Naruto Namikaze: Son of Minato, Descendant of Asura, Ninja of Kumo
by Atrayen
Summary: An AU of Naruto, where circumstances led the Raikage to be given Naruto to raise on the night of October 10th. Watch as Naruto, with the help of Yugito and Killer Bee, inadvertently unlocks the chakra of Asura within him early on and becomes one of the strongest shinobi of all time. YugiNaru and others. Warning: Early on, Naruto may seem godly. Slow beginning. SEE ANNOUNCEMENT
1. Prologue: A Legend is Born

**A/N: Hello and welcome to my own version of Naruto! I'm going to warn you early on because I know there may be a few problems with it - Naruto will seem incredibly godly throughout the early parts of the story up through, say, the Tsunade Retrieval Arc. I'm also changing up some of the characters to make them seem a lot more... ah, useful to the story. It is my belief that the thing only worse than killing off an incredibly important character (cough, Hiruzen Sarutobi, cough), is keeping around an absolutely god-awful useless character who only served one purpose early on in the story. The Sasuke fangirl club will still exist, but I'm going to make each character far more mature than they were made to be in the original manga. Additionally I'm going to loosely stick to canon events, but I'm going to throw in a few twists, as obviously I need to due to Naruto being a Kumo ninja. There will be absolutely no harem. Pairings will be Naruto and Yugito, Sasuke and Sakura (no I'm not siding one way or the other), Kiba and Hinata, Shikamaru and Temari, Ino and Choji and a few select others when I make a final decision. There might also be some Tsunade and Jiraiya action, who knows. One last note, early on in the story it's going to seem like the only thing written is narrative, but I promise by the third chapter there will be a lot more substance. I promise. Anyway, that said, enjoy! **

**DISCLAIMER: I, obviously, do not own Naruto, nor would I ever be capable of keeping such a successful manga going.**

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_Konohagakure, October Tenth, 5:24 PM_

The air in the village was still – almost lifeless. There was no autumn breeze sweeping through the streets, a fact that made many of the citizens of Konoha nervous. A fact that wasn't helped when everyone remembered that Kumogakure had sent its Yondaime Raikage and a group of Kumo's own ANBU Black Ops a little over a week ago to negotiate a more permanent peace treaty. The attitude between Kumo and Konoha was tense, and everyone knew it. Kumo was widely known not to possess many Kekkei Genkai, a weakness caused by the lack of clans within Kumo. However, Kumo possessed more jinchūriki than the other four elemental nations. This seemed to offset the imbalance between their lack of Bloodlines.

This peace agreement was looked upon as strange by everyone in the Lands of Fire and Lightning, as both nations had been at each other's throats for what seemed like millennia. The catalyst for this treaty was a strange mutual respect that both the Yondaime Hokage and Yondaime Raikage seemed to hold for each other. They both were the fastest shinobi in the entire world, none capable of matching their speed. Save, of course, for each other. The Raikage and Hokage had both grown weary of the reports of small skirmishes between their shinobi on missions, a fact that was only amplified by the war between Iwa and Konoha.

However the treaty had been signed. The Raikage and his guard were planning on leaving the very next day to return to Kumo with news of this new alliance. Trade would soon boom, and many merchants were excited with the prospect of a new source of income. However, as the Raikage would soon learn, nothing ended normally in Konohagakure. A, as he was known, was simply walking down a rather large thoroughfare and enjoying the warmer air of the Land of Fire when he stopped. He noted quickly that the other shinobi around him had stopped as well. _So I'm not the only one,_ he mused, _who seems to sense this sudden presence. But it's strange… It's almost like the Hachibi, but that cannot be right—_

He was interrupted as a large eruption of smoke in the center of town blew through the air.

"Kyūbi!" he heard. Screams filled the air as the civilians around him began running for their lives. A blood-curdling roar sounded from the smoke, and a large blast of air cleared it. A's heart sank. The Kyūbi had been unleashed on Konoha. As if the Kyūbi had heard his thoughts, it opened its mouth and began gathering chakra. _The Bijū Dama_, A assessed. _If that damn thing blows up in this city, Konoha will be destroyed._ _And I just made peace with them, too. Dammit all._ The Kyūbi unleashed the large ball of dark chakra at the Hokage Monument. Much to A's surprise, however, it seemed as if the ball of highly concentrated chakra was absorbed into the mountain. A knew better, and the resulting explosion miles away only confirmed it. Minato Namikaze had arrived.

A joined the fight, joining alongside Konoha's Sandaime Hokage to push the beast outside of Konoha with the help of the Monkey King, Enma. This accomplishment did not mean much, as heavy losses were still inflicted on Konoha. Many shinobi fell as they protected their home. _These shinobi possess so much discipline. I'm beginning to respect these Konoha shinobi more and more. However, that does not excuse the fact that Minato hasn't shown up yet! Where the hell is he!? _A thought, angry that he seemed to be doing the Hokage's job for him. As if he had heard him, Minato appeared. He was injured and A realized that he had battled whoever set the Kyūbi loose. As quick as he had come, Minato vanished, taking the Kyūbi with him. A cursed. _That damn arrogant upstart!_ _If he thinks he can take on that monster by himself, he's sorely mistaken._ A, along with several other shinobi and the Sandaime Hokage, rushed to find where Minato had taken them.

Fifteen minutes of searching later, they found Minato, Kushina and what appeared to be a newborn infant. Minato and Kushina were both impaled upon the Kyūbi's claw, and both A and Hiruzen noted the ritual. "They're going to seal the Kyūbi inside that infant!" Hiruzen deduced. A nodded, also coming to the same conclusion. Both men watched in awe as the entire Kyūbi was sealed into the infant. As soon as the Kyūbi was sealed, the barrier fell. Hiruzen and A rushed to Kushina and Minato and rolled them both over. They were still both alive, but barely. A knew they weren't going to make it, but Hiruzen ordered medical attention. Kushina and Minato looked at A, a pleading glint in their eyes.

"Please… Please Raikage-sama… Take Naruto," Kushina pleaded weakly, pointing at the infant. "Your brother is already a well-respected jinchūriki, you can look after him."

A looked between Minato, Kushina and the baby Naruto, curiosity evident in his features. "But why?" he asked, confusion the only discernable emotion in his voice. "You would allow me three bijū? Why?"

His answer came from Minato, albeit weakly. "I fear Naruto will not be respected here. People will not respect him and treat him as a hero. I don't want Naruto growing up alone, Raikage-sama. I want him to know who his parents are, I want him to know that we loved him. But I cannot protect him, and no one in Konoha will do the job as well as you can. Please…" he begged, tears streaming from his eyes. A inspected Minato's features, Kushina giving the same determined and pleading look. A understood. He wanted Naruto to feel loved, despite his parents both being dead. However, he also knew Iwagakure would be out for Naruto's blood. A sighed. A third jinchūriki running around Kumo… _Perhaps he and little Yugito will get along._ _And then she'll have someone to play with other than Bee…_ A looked once more at the two new parents laying on the ground in front of him. He nodded and smiled, "I promise, you two. Naruto will grow up to be the legend that you want him to be." Minato smiled, "Please, Hiruzen-sama… Let Jiraiya and Kakashi know where Naruto is. I want them both to be able to see him, someday." Minato then turned to A. "Raikage-sama, please, let Jiraiya of the Sannin train him when he is older. I want him to be able to surpass me, someday." A nodded in approval. _Naruto Namikaze_, he thought with great admiration as he lifted the baby into his arms, s_omeday you're going to be a legend, a hero and a very powerful shinobi. I promise, Minato, Kushina, I will fulfill your wish._

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**A/N: Hope you enjoyed the prologue! Like I said, the next chapter is going to seem dull. Bear with me, please! I promise the quality will improve! Rate/Review/Favorite, please!**


	2. Rise of the Namikaze Legend

**A/N: Hey guys! Well, here's chapter one of my story. Like I said, it's starting off slow and short. Chapter two is pretty much done and I can tell you right now it is much more interesting than chapter one and the prologue. A few things:**

**redlox2: Glad you caught that little twist! I understood his motives for doing it in the manga and why Kushina was able to have all of Kurama sealed, but I have a special little revelation for that whole situation later on down the road.**

**The Keeper of Worlds: Glad you like it! I hope I live up to your expectations!**

**SetsunaFSeisei22: NaruYugi seemed like such an interesting opportunity by Kishi and I was kind of sad when she was immediately killed off. Hope you enjoy the rest of the story!**

**That said, away we go!**

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_Eight Years Later…_

A young Naruto ran down the streets of Kumo toward the Raikage Tower. The villagers nodded to him and smiled as he passed. They all knew of Naruto and his secret – it was well known by everyone. He was the jinchūriki of the Kyūbi. But, unlike the villagers of Konoha who feared Kushina, Kumo's villagers respected Naruto. They did not make it a habit to spend much time associating with him, but he certainly wasn't treated like vermin. Killer Bee had changed their opinions of jinchūriki long ago.

As Naruto reached the Raikage tower the two shinobi guards nodded at him, "Good morning, Namikaze-sama." He smiled and kept running.

Naruto's heritage was well known and was not kept secret from him. He knew he originally hailed from Konoha and the Land of Fire, and he knew who his parents were and how they died. He knew of his own inner demon, so to speak, and he knew why he was in Kumo. He was not kept in the dark about anything. He was proud that he could call himself a dual-citizen of both Konoha and Kumo, and that fact was acknowledged by everyone. The Raikage himself made a point to ensure Naruto knew this.

Naruto had spent the past eight years learning and the past two training for the physical demands of being a shinobi. He had made it his goal to become either the Raikage or Hokage someday. The Raikage had taught Naruto of the histories of both Kumo and Konoha, and of the Namikaze and Uzumaki clans. Naruto knew all the most basic things about Chakra theory and the uses of Chakra, he knew about Chakra natures and he knew about Chakra shaping. Naruto had already been made aware of a rather special Kekkei Genkai that he was born with, that being Jinton, or Swift Release. Bee had joked that Naruto was already looking at surpassing both his older brother A and Minato; "Looks like lil' Nine is doin' fine, his speed greater than your's or mine, and one day he will really shine!"

Naruto had met Yugito very early on, both of them becoming very close very fast. Both of them looked up to Bee as an older brother, and seeing as he, too, was a jinchūriki, he decideded to tell them of the dangers and responsibilities that it possessed. Truth be told, A wasn't sure how Yugito and Naruto would be treated after watching his younger brother's struggles early on. He was proud to see that Kumo's attitude toward jinchūriki had drastically changed in the twenty-one years that had separated Bee's eighth birthday and Naruto and Yugito's. Naruto had been introduced to Jiraiya very early on as well and immediately established that his godfather's real name was "Ero-sennin", much to Jiraiya's chagrin. Naruto had demanded that Jiraiya teach him his father's Hiraishin no Jutsu, and both of them were surprised when Naruto seemed to master it almost immediately. Well, 'master' is a very loose term. Naruto got to a point close to where his Father was. However, his father was nowhere near the level that Tobirama Senju had achieved in his life and, as such, was considered an apprentice at the Hiraishin himself.

Naruto was ushered up to the Raikage's office where he waited to be called in. After about three minutes of waiting, Naruto heard the booming voice of the Raikage summon him in.

"A-ojiisan! It's good to see you!" Naruto shouted energetically. A smiled, still touched that the boy would refer to him as an uncle despite the lack of a blood relationship. "So, what's up? What'd you need?" Naruto asked, the excitement in his eyes contradicting the calm manner in which he asked the question. It was obvious Naruto wanted to be a ninja. Most days he would walk away upset and slightly less energetic, being told he was too young to be a shinobi. Today, however…

"Well, Naruto, the day has finally come. I know you have been itching to become a shinobi, and I know you and Yugito are both very much ready for that life. You two have trained hard for it." It was true. Naruto and Yugito had both trained every day they could since Naruto started on his sixth birthday, getting personal training from the Raikage himself, as well as C, Atsuki and Samui. Naruto and Yugito were both proficient in Taijutsu and Kenjutsu, and both knew some basic Ninjutsu. Both were considered prodigies among their age group and, because of it, did not need to attend the Kumo Ninja Academy. In fact, some of the chūnin were envious of Naruto's and Yugito's accomplishments. They had both done what was considered out of their reach at every turn. And now it seemed the Raikage was acknowledging it. "Today is the day that both you and Yugito have been awaiting. I told her this already earlier in the day, as she was awake earlier, but you and she are now both officially genin of Kumogakure. As such, you are now eligible for D-rank missions. I'm not going to lie to you and say that these missions are fun – they're absolutely boring and demeaning sometimes – but they help you learn discipline. They also pay relatively well, and beggars can't be choosy. Tomorrow you and Yugito will both be given your first set of D-ranks. I'm proud of you, Naruto. You've come a long way in eight years."

Naruto was absolutely ecstatic. He couldn't be happier. And when A pulled out a Kumo hitae-ate, Naruto went nuts. He put it on proudly and examined himself in the mirror that A had in his office. The hitae-ate completed his look, he decided. Naruto had decided to grow out his hair like Minato had and thus had two longer bangs that framed his face. His face had already begun to lose the baby fat, and he looked at least twelve, his height of 5 feet tall helping hide his younger age. It was a nice benefit of physical training and it had allowed him to blend in with older kids. His eyes were a very deep cerulean blue, something that many girls immediately noticed and complemented him on. Naruto wore a black hoodie, an orange Uzumaki clan symbol on each shoulder. Underneath the hoodie was a white t-shirt with the Kumogakure symbol in big black print. Naruto elected to wear black shorts and completed the look with black shinobi sandals which both seemed to have metal-plated shin guards. He was quite proud of his appearance. After nodding in approval, Naruto left A's office, shouting "Thank you, Ojiisan!" as loud as he could as he left.

Naruto decided immediately that his first course of action should be to find Yugito so that they could celebrate. On his way out, however, Naruto bumped into Bee. Naruto jumped up and down, excited as he pointed to his new hitae-ate. "Look, niisan! I did it! I'm a genin!" Bee examined the new addition to his little brother's appearance and smiled. "That's great news lil' Nine, lookin' fine! I think you and I should go find Miss Two so that she, me and you can go out to celebrate your fast growin' rate!" Bee said. Naruto was one of the few people who wasn't irritated in the slightest by Bee's rap. To the contrary, Naruto wished he was as creative as his older "brother". Naruto nodded and together the two jinchūriki ran off in search of Yugito. They didn't have to go far, as she was waiting outside the door of the Raikage's tower for them. The smile on her face said it all. Naruto ran up and hugged her excitedly, both of them cheering about how happy they were.

"We did it, Yugi-chan!" Naruto proclaimed proudly. Yugito could smiled and nodded, responding, "We might be the youngest genin in the history of Kumo!" Naruto smiled proudly and turned toward Bee. "So niisan, where did you have in mind?" Bee smiled an all-knowing smile, "Why, what else could it be? Don't you see, follow me, we're going to go eat at the famous restaurant of Aunt G!" Both of the newly-made genin cheered even louder. Aunt G's restaurant was their absolute favorite, as it had the best fish for Yugito, the best ramen for Naruto and whatever Bee wanted. "Hey, Yugi-chan, Bee-nii, we should invite Omoi! He started the academy today, right? We should bring him along so we can celebrate him surviving!" At this, both Yugito and Bee nodded, smiling. It was no secret that, when they were actually given an official team, Naruto wanted Omoi to be their third member. He and Naruto had immediately become friends when they met a year ago. Omoi was prone to exaggeration, but he also was incredibly smart and analytic. Naruto knew that Omoi would complement both himself and Yugito perfectly. As they started walking, Naruto couldn't help but grin like an idiot. He was a genin at eight years old. This was insane! _Yugi-chan is right, we have to be the youngest genin in history, _Naruto thought. There was no way he was going to let down Yugi-chan, A-ojiisan, Bee-niisan and, most importantly, himself. He was going to give it his all.

When they arrived at Omoi's residence Naruto was the one to knock. When Omoi answered he was immediately blinded by the sight of a shiny metal hitae-ate resting on Naruto's head. Omoi sighed. "So you're already a genin? Damn, I'm impressed Naruto! Although now that I've said that you're probably going to get a big ego, and if you get a big ego you might think you're stronger than you are, and if you do that you might challenge a jōnin, and if you challenge a jōnin you might die!" Naruto and Yugito both facepalmed pretty hard, leaving very visible red markings on their foreheads from where their palms met their face. Bee just looked bored. Naruto recovered from the overly depressing exaggeration and smiled, "Yo Omoi, you wanna join us at Aunt G's? We're going to celebrate and we thought we should add celebrating the first day of the academy for you to that!" Omoi smiled and nodded, calling out to his mom that he was leaving and he'd be back in three hours or so. With that, the group was off. Not before Omoi made another long-winded exaggeration about being late, of course.

When they arrived they were immediately seated and, much to their delight, the waitress already knew what they would order. Naruto glanced at Omoi and asked, "So how was the first day? Exciting? Boring? Troublesome?" Somewhere in Konoha a member of the Nara clan sniffled. Omoi sighed and rolled his eyes. "I swear, the first question that was asked was by one of your fangirl club, demanding to know where their precious 'Naruto-kun' was. I swear I almost puked." Bee and Naruto laughed while Yugito sighed. She didn't know why, but she was particularly possessive of Naruto. Omoi smiled at Yugito, "Don't worry Yugito, I told them that he was taken by you. Don't even stress about it." At this, Yugito's eyes widened and she blushed. "N-Naruto and I aren't d-dating!" she stammered. Bee laughed even harder, and Naruto just looked between Omoi and Yugito. Omoi smirked, "Sure, that's why whenever you see those other girls eyeing him up you make sure to give them death glares." Yugito shook her head rapidly, "No! I just want them to mind their own business, I know they'd only be interested in him because of his heritage!" she yelled. Omoi was on the verge of tears with how hard he was laughing. Yugito was an absolute badass among their class, but she was clueless sometimes. Ever since they had met it had been obvious that Naruto and Yugito were practically meant for each other. Whether or not being jinchūriki had anything to do with it was another question entirely. Naruto just rolled his eyes as his two best friends bickered.

As the group finished up their meal they all bid each other good night and left until it was only Yugito and Naruto remaining. "May I walk you home, Yugi-chan?" Naruto asked politely. Yugito smiled at his request. "I would love it if you did, Naruto-kun!" Naruto smiled and slowly they started walking toward Yugito's apartment. Truth be told, the question was a moot point. Naruto and Yugito were practically neighbors, Naruto's apartment was just across the street. Still, he wanted to feel like a gentleman. As the pair reached Yugito's apartment she turned to face Naruto, smiling. "I had a great time tonight, and I'm really excited to be starting my shinobi career with you tomorrow, Naruto-kun." Naruto grinned in response, "I know, Yugi-chan. I'm so psyched! I've never been this happy! Anyway, I'll see you tomorrow, neh?" Yugito nodded and was about to walk up the stairs to her door when she decided to do something uncharacteristic. She turned around and planted a kiss on Naruto's cheek. They both blushed furiously, but Yugito merely smiled at Naruto and skipped happily up the stairs. Naruto stood there, looking completely dumbfounded. _Well that was… unexpected. _Naruto thought. _These are going to be an interesting five years… _Naruto shrugged and walked across the street to his own apartment. After showering and changing into sleepwear, Naruto crawled in bed. He smiled at the ceiling before slowly drifting to sleep. The excitement was whirling in his mind, but one thing started burning in his thoughts above all. One thing that he hoped the answer to was yes.

_Does Yugi-chan actually have feelings for me?_

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**_Fin._****I'll probably have chapter two up in the next few hours at the earliest and by tomorrow at the latest. Hope you guys keep enjoying!**


	3. Rolling Thunder, Crashing Wave

**A/N: Here's Chapter Two! Like I said, from here on in each chapter will be significantly longer. There will be a lot more action and less narrative as well. I'm stoked that I've already got a few fans, thank you guys! You rock!**

**redlox2: The way I phrased Minato being sort of an "apprentice" at the Hiraishin was more due to the fact that he was only able to perform the jutsu on targets with the formula, like you said. I remember a few instances in the anime where it appeared that he performed the Hiraishin to move to unmarked targets, but I'm curious as to whether or not that was the Hiraishin or simply a body flicker. As far as I know, Minato couldn't perform the Hiraishin Slash, meaning he wasn't on the same level as Tobirama.**

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_Five years…_ Naruto thought. _It's been five years since Yugi-chan and I became genin, and three months since Omoi was officially added to our squad and Bee-nii was made our official jōnin sensei. _That was only half the truth. Despite the fact Omoi was just added, he had worked with them since the day they became genin. He had been given credit for every mission that Naruto and Yugito had competed as he had some part in completing it. Regardless of the fact that their mission summary was technically unofficial, Team B had been given credit for every mission completed before the official formation of their squad. The record that Team B had was quite impressive. 254 D ranks, 127 C ranks, 55 B ranks and 10 A ranks. Their first B-rank was assigned when they were eleven, and three months after that they were given their first A rank. A had been watching their growth and continued to push them further, showing that he had the utmost faith in them. Team B was among the strongest teams in Kumo. When Omoi had started working with Naruto and Yugito he had also begun training just as hard as they did, and eventually he caught up, becoming a hugely feared Kenjutsu master and strategist. It complemented Yugito and Naruto perfectly, as they both sucked at strategy but could perform marvelously in a fight.

Naruto himself, though, had been undergoing some strange changes. They started three years ago on his tenth birthday when he started having bad migraines. Then, out of the blue, he would suddenly know a new jutsu, or something new about history that he knew he hadn't been taught. At first he had blown it off, but it started getting especially interesting when, during training, he would start to chain his jutsu use together perfectly, something that he had previously never been able to do. Fūton, followed by katon and finished with doton, for example. Naruto's chakra reserves had also suddenly drastically improved. C, A's sensory type guard, had nearly fainted when he pegged Naruto's chakra level at somewhere beyond that of some of the greatest Kage. Fast forward three years and suddenly you have Naruto Namikaze, the jōnin-level genin of Kumogakure who had mastered an S-rank jutsu in the form of the Hiraishin and had been shown as extremely attuned to not just three chakra natures, but all five. His progress was insanely off the charts.

It was during this time that Killer Bee had introduced both Yugito and Naruto to their bijū. Bee, being a veteran jinchūriki, believed that it would be best if both Yugito and Naruto were able to fight together with their respective bijū. Yugito had shown immediate progress, both befriending her bijū – who immediately introduced herself as Matatabi – and gained access to Matatabi's chakra. Naruto's experience, however, was less than pleasant.

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_Naruto looked at Bee and Yugito whom had now befriended their bijū. Naruto smiled and promised he, too, would befriend his bijū. Naruto sat down and began to patiently meditate, finally feeling himself in a pool of water. As he opened his eyes he realized he was in a sewer. _So this is where my bijū lives? _he immediately wondered. He walked down the tunnel of the sewer until he finally reached a large gate. The gate itself seemed unimportant, but he noticed the large paper seal that seemed to be holding the gate together. _This is it,_ he guessed. Naruto approached the gate slowly before stopping right in front to peer into the darkness._

_"__Hello?" he called out. Immediately he leapt back when he saw a large crimson eye open on the other side. Then a rather dark and vicious voice filled the sewer._

**_"_****_So, my jailor has finally decided to pay me a visit?" _**_the voice asked. __**"This should prove to be interesting. Why are you here, runt? Are you here to beg me for the power to destroy your enemies? Or have you realized that containing me is hopeless and plan on letting me destroy your pathetic body?"**_

_Naruto shook his head, "No, silly! I'm here to ask if we can be friends!" The most terrifying laughter a person could possibly hear assaulted Naruto's ears. He was scared now._

**_"_****_Friends? Friends!? You have to be joking! That's the funniest thing I've ever heard in my life! Have humans finally lost it? You're all the same. All of you. Not one has impressed me, and it is the pathetic fools like you who lead me to despise your kind more!"_**

_Naruto's fear was gone, replaced by a new-found determination. "Stop laughing, you stupid fox! I'm serious, I want to be friends with you! If we're stuck together we might as well work together! That's no way to treat your jinchūriki!" he yelled. He wasn't leaving without making some progress. To his dismay, however, the Kyūbi merely chuckled more. __**"No human wants to befriend me. Your kind is weak, pitiful and cowardly. Your kind cannot accept when a being is far superior to your own. Your kind hates me, your kind fears me and, most of all, your kind does not accept me. I will not believe your words, runt. If you came to try to gain my power you have failed. Now, leave me."**_

_Naruto sighed. "Can I at least know your name? I don't want to call you Kyūbi, fox or demon. That's just disrespectful." The Kyūbi merely narrowed its giant eye. __**"I will not give my name to you, human. You don't have my respect, nor do you have my trust. I don't care for your motives or your beliefs. If you truly want my respect then release me. Free me, surrender your soul to me. Maybe then I will believe you. Unless you are willing to die to let me go I will not listen to a word you say."**_

_With that, Naruto found himself once again sitting where he had begun his meditation, frowning. That was all the answer Bee and Yugito needed. Naruto's bijū was not as amiable as either Matatabi or Gyūki (the Hacibi), they reasoned._

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Naruto had made no more progress since that day. Every time he tried to talk to the Kyūbi he was merely ignored or, worse, insulted until he gave up. He grew more and more depressed as Bee began instructing Yugito in how to effectively partner herself with Matatabi and become as strong a duo as Bee and Gyūki were. It was how Yugito was able to keep up with Naruto and his insane sudden growth.

Speaking of Yugito, she had grown quite a bit. The young and plain blonde girl whom Naruto was close friends with had grown a lot. At thirteen years old she already had developed into quite a young woman. Everything about her was attractive. Whether that was natural or aided due to Matatabi was up for debate. Yugito had seemed to be blessed with the perfect "hourglass" figure, as Naruto had been informed by his godfather Jiraiya, one that any woman would love to have. At thirteen years old Yugito had already developed C cup breasts – something Naruto only knew because Jiraiya was the legendary Ero-sennin – and very wide hips. All the years of training had also helped develop Yugito's legs and, ahem, rear end, as well. Her curvaceous figure immediately drew the attention of every single male that walked by. Naruto hated them all for it. But for Naruto it was Yugito's face that truly mesmerized him. Her blonde hair was a gorgeous honey blonde that seemed to be even shiner in the sunlight. Her eyes were a stunning violet that seemed to reflect a fierce beauty in them. Her skin was a very light tan, a fact that that she emphasized by what she wore.

Violet was obviously her favorite color. She had elected to attach her Kumo hitae-ate to a violet headband in place of the standard black that was given to all genin. She chose to tie her hair up in a tight ponytail which she let fall down her back. Her shirt was a very tight-fitting purple t-shit emblazoned with what appeared to be cat claw symbols on each shoulder and a white floral pattern on the back and front sides. Despite the fact that she was only a genin the Raikage had given both her and Naruto the white flak jackets that symbolized they were practically elite ninja already. While she favored straight taijutsu using her bijū's abilities, she had two "Supervibrato Raiton Blades", the same type of weapon that Bee favored, slung over her right shoulder with a padded dual-sheathe to protect the shoulder left unprotected by the Kumo Flak Jacket. She wore gold-steel bracers on each wrist. Around Yugito's waist was a violet sash decorated with a white Kumo symbol in a black circle. She elected to wear tight black pants with metal kneepads built on. To finish up her attire she decided to wear black heeled shinobi sandals with metal shin guards.

But it wasn't just her physical appearance that had changed. Her personality had also changed quite heavily. She was always strong willed, but the past five years had molded that strong will into a fierce charisma and loyalty to Kumogakure. She was also very intelligent, possibly smarter than even Mabui – A's assistant – but never acted arrogant or showed off. She was very modest and had a strong sense of humility, something that everyone admired about her. Despite the fact that she had strong feelings for Naruto (something that she wouldn't admit, though Matatabi made a point to tease her about it every chance she got), she never let her feelings get in the way of her own training. She was a very strong ninjutsu user as well, having strong affinities for fūton, katon and raiton jutsu. She had a unique thing going for her as her katon jutsu all appeared blue, similar to the blue fire that cloaked Matatabi. Her raiton jutsu also all appeared to be a much fiercer shade of blue, different than the standard whitish-blue of an average raiton user. In terms of her chakra reserves she was nearly at the same level as Naruto, however she was not as strong a ninjutsu user as he was. She made up for it by being a stronger taijutsu and kenjutsu user due to her cooperation with Matatabi. That wasn't to say Naruto was weak – he was capable of lasting a full five minutes against the Raikage before finally losing due to lack of experience – but she was simply better because of her jinchūriki-bijū connection.

Currently Naruto was preparing for a meeting with the Raikage. He assumed he was going to get another mission today. Naruto checked his appearance in the mirror. Naruto had let his hair get rather long. If one were not to know the difference between Naruto and Minato, one would assume they just saw Minato walk by. He had grown quite a bit, standing at a tall stature for his age of 5'4", and his training had granted him a very lean and muscular appearance. He _looked _fast, something he was quite proud of. Naruto decided to keep his appearance similar to his teammate Yugito's in that he wore practically the same things she did. The only difference was that he wore a long sleeved black shirt with orange stripes along each sleeve and a large orange Uzumaki clan symbol on his back. He wore two metal shoulder protectors and two white-steel bracers. He had taken to using the Supervibrato Raiton Blades as well. His blades were unique, however, as each blade had the Hiraishin formula painted onto the hilt, and were able to channel both raiton and fūton chakra to a devastating effect. He also used four of these blades. Naruto wore a black utility belt in place of a sash with a unique pouch for kunai, one that was larger than the average kunai pouch. The reason for this difference was due to Naruto's use of Hiraishin tri-pronged kunai, given to him as a twelfth birthday gift by his godfather Jiraiya. He, just as Yugito did, favored tight-fitting black shinobi pants and also wore black shinobi sandals, without heels of course, that each had metal shin guards built on. After approving that everything was clean and ready to go he left his apartment and began his journey toward the Raikage tower.

Upon arriving his suspicions were proved correct when he noted that Omoi, Yugito and Bee were all waiting for him. He waved at them, "Hey Omoi, Yugi-chan, Bee-nii!" Naruto was a cheery and upbeat shinobi, despite the fact that he had been a part of 10 A-ranks that involved mass killing. His first kill shook him up quite a bit, but he grew used to it. His fear subsided when Bee explained that sometimes it was inevitable.

"Wassup lil' Nine! We're currently waiting in line to see that brother of mine. Looks like today we're gonna get another mission, and I'm perfectly happy with this decision." Bee rapped. Despite the frustration that sometimes came along with Bee's rap, Yugito, Omoi and Naruto all enjoyed it. He was quite creative sometimes. That, and they had all become quite fluent in understanding him. Naruto walked up to Yugito and smiled, "So Yugi-chan, wanna bet that we get an A-rank today?" he asked. She shrugged and smiled in return, "I dunno, Naruto-kun. I sure hope so, and I also hope it pays well. I've been eying this new bed that they just invented. It costs a fortune but, supposedly, you feel like you're sleeping on a cloud!" They both laughed at the prospect of sleeping on a cloud. That was when Omoi decided to join the conversation, "Oh yeah? The Cloud Mattress bed is amazing, my mom said she ordered one after tried it out. It really does feel like sleeping on a cloud, it isn't an exaggeration. Trust me, I know all about exaggerations." The group erupted into a bigger laughter.

Their fun was interrupted when Mabui entered the room, "It appears that Raikage-sama is ready to see you four. Please make your way up." she asked politely. Naruto nodded. "Thank you Mabui-okāsan!" In truth, Mabui had acted as Naruto's mother for the past thirteen years of his life. She had grown to love him dearly, and whenever she had the opportunity she would spend time with him. His energetic and happy attitude had an uplifting effect on her, one that she greatly enjoyed. She truly appreciated his decision to regard her as his mother, regardless of the fact that she wasn't actually related to him. She smiled as he ran past, his team close behind. _That boy is going to grow into such a wonderful shinobi,_ she mused. _Maybe even the greatest Raikage the village has ever known._ She smiled at the thought. It was no secret Naruto wanted to become the next Raikage. It was also no secret that he was well on his way to accomplishing that goal. At thirteen years old he could beat almost anyone in a one-on-one duel.

Naruto had a habit of just barging in on the Raikage. Neither he nor the Raikage minded much, as A had actually done that often himself when he was younger. However, today, he was expecting it. When the door flew open and Naruto walked in with his team behind him, A could only smile. "Well, Team B, I have another mission for you. This one is actually rather interesting, too." A announced. Naruto grinned even wider than he had been thirty seconds before. "A-ojiisan, is it an A-rank? Please tell me it's an A-rank." Naruto pleaded. He had been in love with anything above B-rank and he was awaiting the day that he got his first S-rank. He and Yugito both relished that challenge. Omoi did as well, but he wasn't as eager as the two jinchūriki were out of concern that, for once, was entirely warranted. A smiled. "It, in fact, is. Team B, the mission I am about to give you is going to be the first collaboration mission I think I've ever given out." Naruto's excitement died down, immediately replaced by a burning curiosity. "Your mission will be to protect a bridge builder from the Land of Waves named Tazuna. Apparently the Land of Waves is in a really bad situation right now, some business boss named Gatō has them all under an iron grip and their economy is terrible. This bridge would free them from Gatō's grasp and Gatō knows this. He's going to send everything he has at Tazuna, and it is your mission to defend him at all costs." A explained.

Naruto nodded. "Understood, A-ojiisan. So who's team are we collaborating with? Team C?" Naruto's comment was more directed at Omoi, who everyone knew had a huge crush on Karui. A shook his head, "No. The reason this mission is so unique is due to who you are collaborating with. A group of genin from Konoha, known as Team Seven, will be your partners." Yugito and Naruto seemed shocked, but Omoi was the one who asked the question they were thinking of. "Konoha? Why them? I get that we're in an alliance with them, but why are they involved?" A grinned. "Konoha has just as much to gain from this as we do. Another village we could trade with? A fishing village, no less? It's perfect. Konoha, however, is getting invoved because the Land of Waves is a gateway for them, one they want to begin fortifying. Iwagakure and Konoha have been at odds ever since the end of the Third Shinobi War, and that's one of the reasons that Naruto here has been raised by us and not Konoha. Minato wanted Naruto to know who his parents were from day one, but that knowledge puts him at risk. Iwa wouldn't dare mess with us, though, so he's perfectly safe here." Omoi, Yugito and Naruto all nodded in understanding. Yugito spoke up, "So, who are the genin of this Team Seven and who is their jōnin sensei?"

A pulled out a file and opened it, the title of the file being "Konoha Ninja Profiles". He pointed at the picture of Team Seven. In the picture was a silver-haired man with what seemed to be gravity defying hair wearing a Konoha hitae-ate over his left eye, an overly-excited pink haired girl, a rather pale and thin boy with short-cut black hair and what looked like a fake smile, and a darker-skinned boy with bluish-black hair and dark eyes that seemed to be rolling them out of frustration at something. "From left to right, Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno and Sai. Their jōnin sensei is Kakashi Hatake, wielder of the Sharingan and Ninja of One-Thousand Jutsu. They may not look like much, but they are pretty strong. Not anywhere near as strong as you, of course, but they won't hinder you if you run into any dangerous criminals." Team B nodded. That was all that their partners needed to be capable of. A looked at his clock and sighed. "I don't guarantee that they will be anything special, but supposedly that Uchiha kid is pretty strong, and that Sai kid is capable of using paint as a weapon. I don't understand how and I'm not going to ask. Regardless, you leave tomorrow in the morning and meet up with them at Konoha's gates. Dismissed." Team B nodded and exited the office, murmuring how they were curious to see how strong Konoha actually was. A smiled. _You can also get some insight as to how strong they are when the chūnin exams roll around, seeing as you'll be competing in them this year._ With that, A sighed and returned to his paperwork. He cursed whoever invented paperwork.

* * *

Team B agreed to return home to start packing early so they could spend the rest of night out at Aunt G's restaurant, which had become quite a large deal since Team B discovered it seven years ago. Team B was not forgotten, however, and had a special booth reserved solely for them whenever they desired. Each of them had a special dish named after them – Naruto had a ramen special, Yugito had a delicious fish special and Omoi had a beautiful steak special – and they had quickly capitalized on the discount they received when they ordered their own signature dishes. In fact, Team B had become something close to an icon for Kumo. Despite the three jinchūriki that comprised most of Team B, every single member was highly recognized and celebrated. Naruto and Yugito loved that they weren't ostracized for their unique condition. Especially because it allowed them to have full access to everywhere they wanted to go. They had heard how incredibly awful that jinchūriki were treated in other villages, and how their own sensei Bee had been treated when he was younger. They were incredibly happy that they were treated with respect and not as outcasts.

Naruto finished packing and ran out the door, grabbing his wallet as he left. He was excited about the mission, but he knew A-ranks meant they would be gone from the village for a while. He was going to satisfy his appetite. On his way to the restaurant he met up with Yugito, who seemed to be waiting for him right outside his door. He smiled as she greeted him. "Naruto-kun! All ready for tomorrow?" she asked. Naruto nodded, "So, teaming up with Konoha. That should be interesting. What do you think of our allies?" he asked. She shrugged, "In truth they don't look that special. That one guy, Sai, looks like a total creep. The girl looks like nothing more than a fangirl," they both shuddered at that, "and then that Sasuke guy… I don't know about him. He looks dangerous. But I guess it's not fair to judge a book by its cover." Naruto nodded. It was a fair assessment, just about the same assessment that he made. Still, something seemed familiar about the silver haired jōnin that was in the picture. Naruto grinned, "Besides, if that Sasuke guy tries anything I'll kick his ass." They both laughed. Yugito seemed to tense up, and then her facial expression changed from one of mirth to one of deep contemplation. "Naruto?" she asked.

"Yeah? What's up?"

"You came from Konoha, right? What if they try convincing you to go back? You have dual-citizenship, anyway. You could easily go to Konoha and live there."

Naruto stiffened, and then he started laughing hard. He clutched his sides, obviously in pain from how hard he was laughing, "That's a good one, Yugi-chan! And why would I leave Kumo? I mean, if I leave I wouldn't have you anymore." He immediately started blushing, and then hastily added, "…or Omoi, or Bee-nii, or A-ojiisan, or Mabui-okāsan." He smiled sheepishly and moved both of his hands behind his head. Yugito, however, knew what he meant. She smiled and blushed a little bit. _So he _does _like me!_ she thought happily. _Maybe I'll have to bring it up on the mission. There'll probably be plenty of alone time._

That's when Matatabi decided to join in. **_And then you can take him, kitten! You can take him and make him yours! _**Yugito blushed furiously. _Tabi! You're insane, stop being such a colossal pervert. You're worse than Jiraiya. _she replied. Matatabi scoffed. **_Please, that 'Jiraiya' has nothing on me. Besides, kitten, you need to have some love in your life. And even more than that, you two are practically dating already. Stop being so uptight. You like him, he likes you, just tell him already!_** Yugito sighed mentally and cut the connection, hoping to get some peace and quiet. Her mood brightened when they saw Omoi and Bee waiting for them at the door of Aunt G's. "Looks like lil' Nine and Miss Two came here together, too! I hope Nine was kind, ya foo, ya foo!" Bee rapped. Yugito smiled and rolled her eyes, and Naruto laughed, greeting Bee with a brofist. Omoi just shook his head, sighing. "I swear, you two are oblivious." he muttered.

The night passed quickly, Team B laughing and joking and messing around with the occasional attempt by Omoi or Naruto to match Bee's rap, which only ended in Yugito lightly punching the offender. The night ended when Omoi and Bee left, walking the opposite direction of Yugito's and Naruto's apartments. The pair of blondes walked home together, smiling at the moon. "Y'know, Yugi-chan, I'm really glad that we were put on the same team." Naruto said happily. Yugito smiled, "I'm glad too, Naruto-kun." That's when she decided to slide her hand in his. He looked at her inquisitively, but she just smiled affectionately. He smiled back, and together they walked through the night.

* * *

Morning came fast, and Team B was already at the front gate. They knew it was about a two day journey to Konoha, but they weren't worried. They had three days to get to the meeting point. They took their time, sightseeing along the way. They passed through several smaller towns and kept themselves well rested, sparring lightly to make sure they were warmed up in the event of an ambush. It was noon on the third day of their journey when they finally arrived at the main gates of Konoha, and to their surprise only the genin of Team Seven were waiting for them. Bee waved to the group of genin as they approached, and it seemed like they tensed for a second. They relaxed when they saw the Kumo symbols on Team B's hitae-ate.

"So you're the Kumo team that was sent to help us, then?" the paler one asked. "That is good, you are right on time, unlike our own sensei. My name is Sai, pleased to meet you!" he greeted happily. That was weird, he was genuine. His smile in Team Seven's profile picture led the Kumo team to believe he wasn't. It was just as Yugito said, you can't judge a book by its cover. Bee nodded, and then looked at the pink-haired girl. She moved behind Sasuke and shyly spoke, "I'm Sakura Haruno." Team B's focus then shifted to the boy in front of her. He had a bored expression on his face. "Sasuke Uchiha." he answered. It was clear he wasn't interested in anything. That was when their jōnin sensei revealed himself. He was giving what appeared to be an eye-smile through his mask. "I am Kakashi Hatake, Team Seven's sensei! You must be Team B, the one we've heard so much about." Bee nodded and replied first, "I'm Killer Bee, this Kumo team's sensei, ya see?" Omoi laughed a little and then shrugged, following up his sensei's introduction, "I'm Omoi of Kumo. I don't really have a clan of my own, so I just go by Omoi." Omoi nodded to Yugito, who in turn, introduced herself. "Yugito Nii of Kumo. Nintaijutsu specialist of Team B." she said plainly. Everyone's gaze shifted to Naruto. He smiled shyly and spoke, "I'm Naruto Namikaze." The entire Konoha team froze. "Namikaze, as in son of Minato?" Kakashi asked. Naruto nodded, to which Team Seven gasped.

"Wait, if you're our Yondaime Hokage's son, why are you on a Kumo team?" Sai asked. Naruto shrugged and laughed. "It's a long story, and it looks like our client is here." Sure enough, Tazuna strolled out of the gate, stopping any questions that would've been asked. He seemed nervous. "So this is my shinobi guard, eh?" he asked. "I hope you guys are stronger than you look. Word is that Gatō isn't sparing any expense in killing me." Naruto smiled, "Don't worry, Tazuna-san. Team B has completed ten A-rank missions with a thorough success rate, we've got you protected." The Konoha team all appeared to be in shock. "Ten!?" Sasuke asked. "How?! You're a genin team!" Yugito chuckled, "We've been a genin team for five years. We started our ninja careers when we were eight years old." Omoi, Naruto and Bee all nodded confirmation. Sakura gawked at them, particularly Naruto. She wasn't going to deny it. He was cute. _Dammit, now there are two hot guys in this group… How am I gonna deal with this? I just hope Sasuke-kun steps up soon!_ she thought quickly. "Well? Let's go!" Kakashi said, authority behind his voice. They began their journey toward the Land of Waves.

They had been walking for about thirty minutes when Team B noticed something strange. A puddle in the middle of the road. And there was no rain recently enough to warrant that large a puddle. Yugito, Naruto and Omoi all looked at Bee, subtly, and he nodded. They stole a glance at Kakashi, who nodded as well. As they passed they felt the chakra recede, two figures slowly rising. Without warning chains were thrown around Kakashi, and Sakura screamed as their sensei was torn to bits. The two ninja began laughing. "So much for Kakashi of the Sharingan! What'dya say, Meizu? The big guy next?"

The one named Meizu also laughed. "Agreed, Gōzu! Let's kill 'em all!" Without warning, both of them suddenly were slammed into the tree. When they looked up they saw Naruto and Yugito both smiling at them. "We dare you. Try to get past us." Both were about to stand when a kunai caught the chain that both brothers were holding and nailed it to the tree. Naruto and Yugito both smirked, looking behind them to see Sasuke. "Looks like that weapon is all they have." he assessed. "No pouches for Kunai, their entire strategy relies on that chain." Naruto and Yugito nodded, an appreciation for the Konoha genin slowly forming. _So he isn't useless after all._ they both thought simultaneously. Quickly, Naruto and Yugito both made a few handsigns. The brothers were essentially trapped. This was going to work.

"**Fūton: Divine Wind!"**

**"****Katon: Grand Fireball!"**

The blue fireball that Yugito ignited combined with Naruto's wind, turning the entire area where the brothers were into an inferno. Sakura, Sasuke and Sai all watched in amazement at the teamwork and the powerful jutsu combination.

_These guys are no joke,_ Sasuke analyzed.

_That was insane!_ Sakura mentally shouted.

_It appears these Kumo genin are incredibly powerful and must be taken seriously._ Sai decided.

The two brothers charged out of the trees, their chain apparently broken. They were both immediately taken care of by Omoi, who quickly dispatched both with his katana in the blink of an eye. The immediate assessment that was made by Team Seven was one word: _Fast!_ They heard laughter behind them and turned to see the smiling face of Kakashi. "We thought you were mincemeat!" Sakura shouted, obviously angry. Kakashi laughed a little bit harder. "I knew they were there, so I created a clone of myself and had him take the blow. In truth I wanted to see how you all would react. Apparently this Team B is not playing around, that was a powerful combo. However, I must ask; blue fire?" he inquired toward Yugito. She smiled sheepishly, "Well, you see, it's part of a special Kekkei Genkai I have. It makes my fire stronger and appear blue." Yugito explained. Apparently she wasn't thrilled with the prospect of explaining that she is a jinchūriki to the Konoha ninja. Naruto understood. He wasn't sure how he was going to explain his origins to them when the question came up later.

Sasuke re-inspected the Kumo team, taking extra time examining Naruto. _He's pretty strong…_ Sasuke thought. _I should train with him while I have the chance._ _He might be my only shot of unlocking my Sharingan. But… there's something else about him… _Naruto noticed that Sasuke was staring at him. "Can I help you?" he asked. Sasuke blinked, apparently coming out of some trance. "Yeah, I was just thinking how great it would be if I sparred with you. You appear to be miles ahead of me in training, and I figured if I have a chance I wanna train a bit." Naruto nodded. He kind of expected it, to be honest. Just not this soon. "Sure, Sasuke. How about tonight?" Sasuke shrugged, "Sounds good to me."

The rest of the trip was relatively silent. The only noise made was the hushed conversation between the Kumo genin, apparently discussing strategy if they ran into another enemy. Bee and Kakashi were also speaking, but Team Seven was close enough to listen to that.

"So, Bee, Naruto has become quite the ninja." Kakashi said. "Stronger than his father was at that age. And he's been a genin since eight years old?" Bee nodded. He knew that Kakashi wouldn't understand his rap, it was an art to be able to understand him, and as such he spoke normally. "Yeah, see, Naruto's goal is to become the next Raikage of Kumo. He trains day and night to get stronger. He's got quite a lot of jutsu under his belt, and he's quite unique in that he has a strong affinity for all five chakra natures." Sasuke didn't know much about chakra natures, so when Kakashi gasped he knew it was a big deal. Sai did too, but Sakura was a bit clueless. "All five? That's insane!" Kakashi exclaimed. "The only ones I know who accomplished that are our Sandaime Hokage, the Sage of Six Paths and his sons." Bee nodded. "Naruto has always had insane power. My brother and I could feel it the moment he turned ten years old. His chakra reserves suddenly expanded to be massive. I dunno what that kid does to get that much chakra, but he's incredible." Kakashi couldn't speak. What could he say? _Minato-sensei… I hope you're proud of what Naruto has become. Now I see why you gave him to Kumo…_

That's when Sakura decided to ask Sasuke who the Sage was. Sasuke shook his head, "And you had the highest test scores in our class? Sakura, you should know this. The Sage of Six Paths was the one true god of the shinobi world. One of the few chakra users who could bend the world itself to his will. He's the one who practically founded the entirety of the shinobi. If Naruto is already capable of using all five chakra natures he could very well be the next coming of the Sage himself." Sakura's eyes widened. _A god?_ she wondered. _So Kumo has a god among their genin?_ Sai himself had remained silent the entire time. Usually he would be the one to make a comment to insult both of them, but he, too, remained quiet. There was nothing he could say. This 'Naruto' would prove to be quite troublesome. _Danzo-sama must know immediately._ he decided.

It wasn't long before the group reached the docks. The boat was only large enough for five to remain in it, so Naruto, Yugito, Omoi and Bee elected to simply walk across. When they finally arrived on the opposite shore Naruto tensed. He spun around and threw one of his standard kunai into a bush. Team Seven tensed as well. A white rabbit came hopping of the bush. Team Seven relaxed and Sakura yelled at Naruto, "Baka! You almost killed a defenseless bunny!"

Naruto sighed, "Rabbits don't have white fur in the summertime. That was a kawarimi… Which means-" Naruto's eyes widened. "-GET DOWN!" he yelled. Sure enough a huge sword came cleaving through the air right over the entire group. A man appeared on the handle. Naruto quickly inspected him, recognizing every single detail from one of the many bingo books he had been given. He was a wanted nukenin from Kirigakure. Short, spiky brown hair, brown eyes, rugged face covered half in bandages, large sword, a belt across a rather muscular bare chest where ne no doubt sheathed said large sword, baggy ninja pants… Naruto's eyes narrowed. "Zabuza Momochi, the Demon of the Hidden Mist. Wanted nukenin from Kirigakure and A-Rank criminal."

Zabuza smirked. "My reputation precedes me, I see. And who are you, Kumo runt?" Naruto smiled himself. "Oh, you know, just the guy who's going to kick your treacherous rotten ass!" He was about to charge right in when Kakashi stopped him. "Don't. Let me handle him, you guys protect Tazuna." Zabuza's eyes gleamed in hellish hunger. "Kakashi of the Sharingan. Copy Cat ninja. Shinobi of One-Thousand Jutsu. I'd love to be the one to personally kill you. This will be fun." He brought his hands up in a jutsu handsign, smiling demonically. "**Kirigakure no Jutsu!**"

The entire lake suddenly became shrouded in a thick mist. Zabuza's disembodied voice called out to Kakashi. "Eight points. Larynx, spine, lungs, liver, jugular, artery, kidney and heart. I wonder, Kakashi, which point would you prefer to die by?" Before Zabuza was able to say anything else, however, Naruto stepped forward. "Hey, Zabuza! Don't forget about us. You're not the only one who can use powerful jutsu." Naruto grinned, making a few hand signs. "And above that, I can use fūton as well! So much for this little hidden mist jutsu. **Fūton: Hurricane Wall!**" The wind picked up intensely, originating from Naruto at its center. The wind began to spin fiercely around its epicenter. Just as suddenly as it had appeared the mist began to clear rapidly. Zabuza was quite literally thrown backwards from the force of the wind. Kakashi almost choked out of shear amazement. Zabuza, on the other hand, was not amused. _This kid… That was easily a B-rank jutsu. Who the hell is this kid?!_ He struggled to his feet, but it was short lived. Naruto appeared immediately in front of him and slammed his knee into Zabuza's stomach, throwing him back pretty far off the shoreline. Zabuza began to cough fiercely, blood flooding his lungs. He certainly wasn't expecting that level of speed from a child. He rose to his feet slowly, picking up his blade. _Playtime is over,_ he thought immediately. _There is no way I am going to lose to a damn kid!_ He charged forward, pouring chakra into his legs to carry him farther. He swung his blade with as much force and speed as he could muster…

…and it was simply parried by one of Naruto's own blades. Naruto smirked, "You're not the only one with skill in kenjutsu, Zabuza. This is going to be fun!" The two ninja began to duel each other in one of the fiercest and most beautiful kenjutsu matches that anyone on Team Seven would ever see in their lifetime. It was almost like a dance with how fluid the two swordsmen fought, Zabuza with his large Kubikiribōchō and Naruto wielding two of his four Supervibrato Blades. _Left. Right. Across. Down. Up. Across. Block. Roll. Sidestep. Stab. Jump._ Every movement flowed into the next, not a single one was wasted. Zabuza, despite his growing frustration, was thoroughly enjoying it. A duel like this had been sorely missed. Never before had he been matched so perfectly as this. Yugito groaned, "Dammit, why does he get to have all the fun all the time!?" she demanded. Sasuke and Sai were both in awe. Sakura just stood there, dumbstruck. The only thought that ran through each and every member of Team Seven's head could be summed up in five words; _How is he this strong?_

Meanwhile, Zabuza could slowly feel himself being pushed back. He felt his strength waning. "You're damn good, kid. I'll give you that," he grunted. Naruto smiled and, out of nowhere, his strikes seemed to pick up speed. Lightning chakra began to pour from both of Naruto's blades, greatly empowering them. Zabuza's eyes widened. He knew his mistake before it even happened. He blocked Naruto's right-hand slice too early. Naruto quickly turned his swing into a feint, using the momentum to spin around Zabuza's outstretched blade and finished him off with a left-hand stab. Zabuza fell to the ground. He felt himself kicked into a tree. Then, two pinpricks and he was out. Naruto began to approach the fallen swordsman when a masked figure appeared in front of him. The figure nodded to Naruto and spoke, "I thank you for your aid in catching this man. He's been on the run for quite some time, eluding me to no end. I'll take it from here, though. Kiri deals with its own." The figure turned toward Zabuza, hefted him onto its back and disappeared in a shunshin. Naruto frowned and turned back to regroup with the rest of his team. He heard Sasuke smirk, "That was impressive. And you're only a genin?" Naruto sighed and grinned sheepishly. "In Kumo it is shinobi law that one cannot surpass the rank of genin until they are thirteen years of age, as you must pass through the chūnin exams in order to be promoted. I'm sure Konoha has similar rules." Sasuke nodded. Sakura, meanwhile, was jumping up and down. "That was so awesome, Naruto! You're so cool! That was amazing!"

"Tch," Naruto sighed. "Doesn't matter. He's not dead, and that person who took him was not a Kirigakure hunter-nin." Sai frowned. "How do you know this, Naruto-san?" Naruto looked at his own team as well as Kakashi. They both understood what he was referring to. "Kiri hunter-nin do not take the full body back for debt collection. They have a policy that requires them to decapitate the mark before returning for the debt. That way it is entirely clear that the person they are bringing back is, in fact, the target. Some henge transformations can last through death as long as the chakra in the body keeps flowing." Sai shook his head. "But, Naruto-san, what if that hunter-nin decided to perform the decapitation somewhere else? Could you be mistaken?"

"No. I wasn't sure at first as it looked like he simply passed out, but now that I think more carefully, that hunter nin used senbon needles aimed precisely at the correct pressure points to knock him out. To me that says that, whoever that person was, they were attempting to make it look more believable."

Kakashi sighed. "Regardless, Naruto, that was an impressive display. You beat a wanted A-rank criminal one-on-one in kenjutsu, which is impressive considering he is one of the seven swordsmen." Naruto rolled his eyes and grinned. "Wasn't that difficult, to be honest. Zabuza was widely regarded as the weakest of the seven, with Kisame Hoshigaki easily being the strongest and Raiga Kurosuki being a very close second. Zabuza would fall in mere seconds if he were to duel either of those two." Sai raised a brow, an impressed look settling upon his face. "Your knowledge of other villages is impressive, Naruto-san. It is rare that I find someone who takes just as much interest in that sort of intel as I do."

Naruto shrugged. "Knowledge is, by far, the strongest weapon a shinobi uses. Omoi taught that to me when we were younger because when we first sparred he kicked my ass simply due to knowing my weaknesses." Omoi grinned. "Yeah, and that was about the only time I was able to do that. Ever since then he made it a priority to know every last little detail about anyone." Yugito smiled as well. "Doesn't matter. I still kick his ass in a straight-up taijutsu matchup. The only thing Naruto is better than me at is his ninjutsu." Tazuna decided to interject. "As much fun as it is to stand around talking," he stated rather hastily, "I'd rather be safe in my own home. If you will all follow me, please."

* * *

When the group arrived at Tazuna's home they were greeted by a young woman with beautiful dark hair and dark eyes. She introduced herself as Tsunami, Tazuna's daughter. She quickly ushered them inside and gave them all food to eat, to which they thanked her graciously and began to dig in.

"So you're the team sent to help my father?" she asked politely. The entire group nodded. She smiled. "Thank you, all of you. I know that the mission pay was minimum, we can't afford much more-" she was interrupted by Naruto standing up. "Tsunami-san, we understand. This 'Gatō' guy is an ass and needs to be taken down. No one should have the power to make this many peoples' lives this horrible." Everyone at the table agreed. Sasuke seemed to be wincing, though. Sakura noticed and put her hand on his shoulder, "Sasuke-kun, are you alright?" she asked, concern a major emotion in her voice. Sasuke nodded lightly. "Yeah, just a bad headache… I should be fine, don't worry about me Sakura." Truthfully, Sasuke was in a massive amount of pain. Every muscle in his body began to ache, and it was like he couldn't feel his own chakra anymore. _What the hell is wrong with me?_ he wondered. "Excuse me, Tsunami-san, Tazuna-san, may I go to my room now? I'm not feeling entirely well." Sasuke asked, to which they smiled and nodded. With that, Sasuke stood and left, going upstairs. Sakura was worried, but she knew if she pestered him about it he would jump at her. He was patient with her, even pretty friendly to her when she was put on his team, but he did have his limits. Naruto, however, watched Sasuke leave with curiosity instead of concern. _I wonder if it's anything like the headaches I got when I was younger. Hell, I still get them,_ Naruto mused. He shrugged and finished his meal.

Shortly after Sasuke excused himself the rest of the group finished their meal and asked to be shown to their rooms. There were three guest rooms. Sakura and Yugito were both given one, Kakashi and Bee were given the second largest of the three, and Omoi, Sai and Naruto were all given the largest. When they entered the room all three of the boys noted that Sasuke was already asleep. Naruto sighed and turned around, meeting the gazes of both Yugito and Bee. "We got a long week ahead of us, and I don't know when that Zabuza will show up again," Naruto said, "although I suspect we won't be seeing him for at least a weak. I nailed him pretty badly. Regardless, Yugi-chan, we should train a little bit tomorrow. I know Sasuke wanted to spar me tonight but he's out cold. That said, he's probably going to ask for that spar tomorrow. Bee-nii, can you figure out Sasuke's chakra nature or natures tomorrow? I know you have some of that special paper on you." Bee nodded, and Yugito spoke up. "Alright, Naruto-kun. See you in the morning!" Naruto nodded and walked back into his room, closing the door. It took him a while before he fell asleep, his thoughts were whirling at what seemed to be a million miles an hour. That's when his own headache started. He groaned softly and surrendered himself to exhaustion. He was right about one thing. _This is going to be a long week, isn't it?_

* * *

**Chapter three might be a little while longer, I already had the prologue and the first two chapters done when I first started posting. It might take anywhere from a day to three before I get the next chapter up. That said, hope you guys enjoy the story thus far!**


	4. Revelations, Bonds and Heroes

**A/N: Hey guys! I have another chapter for you all! I'm so glad you all love my story. It means a lot, as this is my first ever. Thank you so much for the support!**

**Swagwell: This chapter is for you! I won't have many interactions with the Kyuubi until later chapters, but there are tons of fights this chapter.**

**Spartan000-B: Thanks man! Means a lot!**

**Redlox2: The answer to the Sasuke/Naruto relationship gets answered in this chapter. As for the question about a Six Paths Senjutsu, just wait and see ;)**

**All that said, here you guys go!**

* * *

The morning came rather quickly. Naruto would argue that it came too quickly. However it was not the sun that woke him up, the sun was currently hidden behind a thick fog. What woke Naruto was the sound of someone groaning in pain. Naruto recognized the voice was not Omoi's, and Sai's bed across from him was empty. That left one person: Sasuke. Sure enough, when Naruto sat up, Sasuke was currently curled up in a ball on his bed clutching his head.

"Sasuke? What's wrong?" Naruto asked, concerned. Sasuke groaned again before he responded. "It feels like my head is splitting open and my body is slowly being torn apart," he explained. Naruto's brow raised. _I wonder…_ "Hey, Sasuke, are you able to feel your chakra network right now?" Naruto asked. He guessed the answer before Sasuke confirmed his suspicions. "No. I can't. It feels like I'm entirely drained of chakra but I'm wide awake, feeling every last nerve in my body cry out in absolute agony." Sasuke grunted. Naruto nodded. "You know, I had the same problem three years ago. Splitting headache, constant muscle pain, that feeling like your chakra is completely gone. You want to know what happened?" Naruto asked. His answer was a grunt. "I suddenly knew jutsu that I had no clue existed the day before. My chakra reserves seemed to shoot up and I suddenly knew things that no one had ever taught me. I'm not entirely sure what it is that caused it."

"Did your eyes feel like they were on fire?" Sasuke asked. Naruto shook his head, "Truthfully, no. But I can only assume you do because, being an Uchiha, part of your chakra network runs through your eyes. Sasuke realized that made a lot of sense. _But I haven't even unlocked my own Sharingan yet! How can a chakra coil in my eyes be burning when I don't even have the ability to use it?_ he wondered. Another sharp wave of pain shot through every muscle in his body and, as quick as it had come the night prior, disappeared. _What the hell? _was his first thought. Slowly he got up. "I'm going to take a guess that the pain just suddenly vanished, am I right?" Naruto asked. Sasuke nodded slowly, unsure as to whether or not it would return. Naruto grinned, noticing is hesitation. "From what I remember the pain wouldn't return for at least a period of three hours." Naruto explained, attempting to reassure Sasuke. "Is there a pattern to the pain so I can at least prepare for it?" Sasuke asked. Naruto nodded. "From what I could tell, the pain seemed to start whenever I was exhausted. It would always start immediately in the morning, and then follow a three hour interval after that. I dealt with it by meditating when it happened. It would stick around for anywhere between fifteen minutes and a half an hour and then disappear as quickly as it had come. I'm honestly not sure what exactly is happening but what I do know is I was always noticeably stronger after the onslaught stopped."

"Well then let's put that theory to the test. Would you care to spar with me after I finish whatever training Kakashi-sensei puts me through today?" Sasuke asked. Naruto grinned, "I figured you'd ask that. Sure, how about tonight?" Sasuke smiled and nodded. Both then realized something rather important. They were starving and they hadn't eaten anything yet. With that, both of them ran downstairs to eat.

* * *

The day was incredibly long and boring. Team Seven spent most of the day practicing their chakra control, running up trees and across the water. At first Kakashi thought it was going to take them a while to do. Surprisingly, however, Sasuke seemed to immediately grasp it and made it all the way to the top of the tree on his first run. No one was more surprised than Sasuke himself. _I've never done anything like that before! _Sasuke thought. _Naruto was right. Whatever is causing that pain is seeming to leave behind an incredible amount of strength. _Sakura and Sai both accomplished what Sasuke had done after ten more tries, but by then Sasuke had already been taken to the water where, much to his immediate surprise, he was able to stand on the water without a problem yet again.

Kakashi informed Sasuke that he was going to go help out the other two and asked him to start working on his katon, more specifically the Phoenix Sage Fire that he had started learning prior to the beginning of the mission. He spent the next thirty minutes using it repeatedly, trying to get the handsign sequence as smooth as possible and as much power behind each individual fireball. Sasuke's training was interrupted by the sudden onset of that strange pain, noticeably worse than the pain before, and he decided to take Naruto's advice and meditate as he let the pain pass. It took fifteen minutes, but after the pain had subsided he _felt_ stronger. He stood up and, by impulse, began a chain of handsigns.

"**Katon: Great Dragon Fire!**"

Sasuke's eyes widened as he witnessed his own jutsu, a huge fireball that took the form of a dragon, burst forward and incinerate a small cluster of trees in front of him. Sasuke fell to his knees, shocked. _How the hell did I know that jutsu?_ he wondered. _I've never done anything like that. My strongest jutsu was my Fireball jutsu… This new one makes that one look pathetic!_ It was at that moment that Sasuke remembered something Naruto had said.

_"__I suddenly knew jutsu that I had no clue existed the day before."_

_Is this what he was talking about?_ Sasuke wondered. Then he grinned. _If that's the case, this pain is a small price to pay to get stronger. Strong enough to defeat _**him. **_But… there's more to it than this. I suddenly have the urge to talk to Naruto… To be friends with him, like I know him really well, almost like he's my brother… What the hell is this feeling? _Sasuke stood up and smiled. _Naruto Namikaze. Hn, strange. I've never felt this compelled to get to know someone before. _He smiled before slowly walking back to the house to grab some food. For some reason he was starving again.

* * *

While Team Seven trained in the basics, Omoi and Naruto were currently engaged in a spar of their own. It was a kenjutsu match. Omoi had insisted that they spar as he had been working on his kenjutsu for a while. Yugito had elected to go off with Bee in order to train her bijū powers a little more in secret which left Naruto. He had expected as much, but what he hadn't expected was how far Omoi had come in such a short period of time. The duel had only lasted five minutes and Naruto was currently being forced back. Even with his blades empowered with wind-natured chakra he wasn't able to turn his defense into an offense. Omoi was winning, and he was winning hard. Omoi decided he wanted to finish it. He strategically outmaneuvered Naruto, cutting in between his defense with a new technique that he dubbed 'Cloud Style: Crescent Moon Beheading' and held his blade to Naruto's neck. "I win," he declared, proudly. Naruto smiled. "Damn, Omoi! When did this happen? You're suddenly able to kick my ass quite handily when just last week our duel lasted nearly a half an hour – a half an hour that ended with you losing!" Naruto asked, clearly impressed by his friend's progress.

Omoi just grinned like an idiot. "I had Bee teach me a bit. I had Samui help, too, since she seems to know quite a bit more about kenjutsu than either of us. I was sick of not being the best on this team at something, and since you are better than Yugito at kenjutsu and I just beat you that makes each of us an expert at something. You with ninjutsu, her with nintaijutsu and myself with kenjutsu." Naruto chuckled. "Seriously? That's what drove you? Omoi, man, you do realize we'd be god-awful without that incredibly strategic mind of yours, right? Neither Yugito nor I are capable of planning fifty steps ahead like you do."

"Well, when you put it like that…" Omoi joked, smiling devilishly. "I suppose you're right. I guess that makes me the best person on this team, right?" Naruto laughed and put his arm around his best friend's shoulder. "You may be an incredible strategist, but I'm the best at improvising when something you didn't account for happens and it all falls apart."

"That rarely happens!" Omoi scoffed, slightly offended.

"Tch, I know man, I'm just giving you a hard time. Can't let that ego of yours grow too big now, can I?" Naruto teased. Omoi just rolled his eyes. Naruto looked toward the sky, noting that the sun was already half-set. "Let's go back Omoi. We've been out here for a while." Omoi nodded. They'd been out on the field for a greater portion of the day training Omoi to harness lightning-nature chakra better. His raiton arsenal was a decent size, he knew a fair amount of jutsu, but he was a one-trick pony in that each of his jutsu were close-ranged attacks. Naruto spent most of the day training Omoi to use long-ranged lightning attacks that didn't put him at risk against a stronger opponent. He managed to learn one. The technique was something Naruto had read about when he was learning about all of the world's most dangerous nukenin. This specific technique was a specialty of Raiga Kurosuki's, where the user would channel lightning through their blade into the sky and direct it toward the earth. Omoi could do it, albeit weakly. The result wasn't spectacular, and the spar was a way of cooling off from the frustration.

Omoi and Naruto were about to begin their trek back to the house when Naruto heard Yugito call out, "Naruto-kun! Wait!" Naruto smiled and turned around to face her. She was wearing a rather mischievous grin. "What is it, Yugi-chan?"

"I want a spar. Right here, right now." Yugito demanded. Naruto raised a brow. "Alright, Yugi-chan," he said, cautiously. _She's learned something new. She doesn't just randomly demand a spar,_ he reasoned. That said, both Yugito and Naruto took their places on the opposite sides of the open field. Little did they all know that Kakashi and Bee were both hidden in the trees, both eagerly awaiting the beginning of the duel. Both combatants smiled as Omoi walked to the center, looking at each of them before shouting "Begin!" Immediately Yugito rushed at Naruto, hurling three kunai. She was a lot faster than she had been a week ago. _Damn, she must've unlocked more of Tabi-san's chakra. Now I see why she was so eager to spar with me, _Naruto realized. This was going to be a real battle. Naruto dodged to the right. He wasn't going to put himself in the air; that would be too risky. Yugito appeared in front of him, clawing toward his chest. Naruto quickly adjusted himself to dodge the strike, flipping backwards in order to put some distance between them. "You've gotten faster," Naruto observed. "This is going to be rather difficult for me, isn't it?"

"Damn straight, Naruto-kun!" Yugito called back, charging forward immediately. Naruto was ready for it this time. _Looks like I have to break out some of my newer techniques, _was all Naruto could figure out before quickly performing a series of handsigns.

"**Jinton: Quickstep!**"

Immediately Naruto became a blur. Yugito's eyes widened. _Damn, I forgot he could do that._ She was barely able to register that he was behind her before she went flying forward from being thrown with incredible force. She turned around to look for him but he was gone again. She cursed. _Dammit! I got careless._

**_Shall I help add my own chakra, kitten? _**Matatabi asked. Yugito sighed. _I suppose you're going to have to, Tabi. I won't keep up with him otherwise._ Almost immediately Yugito felt new power surging through her muscles. She tensed and leapt to the right, narrowly dodging Naruto's next strike. He was gone again before she could retaliate. She sensed him across the field and, sure enough, there he was. Then she noticed he was quickly chaining together a sequence of handsigns. Her eyes widened.

"**Fūton: Divine Wind!**"

As soon as the wind was rushing toward her, he chained together another series of handsigns.

"**Katon: Grand Fireball!**"

The combined effect of the two jutsu created a massive wave of fire rushing toward her. _I have to use my own jutsu, _she thought bitterly. He certainly still had her in ninjutsu. She ran through her own sequence of handsigns.

"**Katon: Hellfire!**"

Yugito exhaled a massive wave of blue fire toward the raging inferno. Both firestorms collided, effectively cancelling each other out. Her success was short lived when the flames parted, revealing Naruto was rushing toward her. She just barely caught the final handsigns in the new sequence.

"**Suiton: Tsunami Wall!**"

A massive wave of water surged toward her, extinguishing the massive wall of fire they had created. Naruto grinned and rode the wave. She realized why he rushed to that side; there was a river behind them. She smiled, determined to finally beat him in his ninjutsu battle. She ran through her own handsigns.

"**Raiton: Wave of Inspiration!**"

Electricity surged from her hands toward the wall of water. Her goal was to electrocute Naruto, turning his own jutsu against him. He grinned and leapt into the air.

"**Doton: Earth Pillar!**"

A pillar of earth rose beneath him, allowing him to safely land on it before the wave of electricity met the tsunami. Yugito wasn't having any of that and, using the chakra Tabi had given her, shot forward, vaulting herself off of a large stone toward Naruto. His eyes widened. Clearly he hadn't planned for this. Yugito's fist connected with Naruto's stomach and he flew backwards, spitting blood out of his mouth. He was going to have to up his game. _But how?_ he wondered. _She has access to Matatabi's chakra. Meanwhile, Furball won't even talk to me. Why do I get the one with the ego?_ Naruto cursed his own luck and sighed. _I guess I have to use this new jutsu that I developed. Hope it works…_ Naruto ran through a sequence of handsigns just as Yugito jumped toward him.

"**Jinton: Accelerated Assault!**"

Naruto disappeared again. This time, though, Yugito immediately felt the effects of this new jutsu. A punch connected with her stomach. A kick landed on her right side. A jab met her lower back. And then she was thrown down, landing in the water with a massive _splash!_ She rose, slowly, wincing as she realized just how much pain she was in. _What the hell jutsu was that? Did he create a new one? _She looked up to see Naruto slowly descending toward the earth. _How do I match that!? I can't even see him, let alone keep up with him,_ she quickly analyzed. _There's no way I can keep up with those damn Jinton techniques he keeps using. _

**_I have the answer, kitten. Let loose. Show him just how far you've come. Show him what Bee and Gyūki have taught us. _**Matatabi whispered, purring. Quickly she added, **_and then, when he's down, take him. Show him that he is yours! _**Yugito blushed furiously. _You freakin' pervert! Why did I get stuck with the one bijū with a guttermind? _She shook her head. _Regardless, I can't. I sense Kakashi's presence. If he finds out what we all are he might freak out. I'm stuck using ten percent, _she vented. Yugito was frustrated. Naruto may have been weaker than her in taijutsu, but he severely outclassed her in ninjutsu. She could _feel_ Matatabi's disappointment, but she also knew that Tabi understood. The last thing she wanted was to be sealed as tightly as the Kyūbi was from one man's fear of something he didn't understand.

* * *

Kakashi watched the match in silence, observing each and every calculated move in awe. _These two are incredible! I've never seen anything like this out of anyone so young. _Kakashi turned to Bee. "How is this possible? They're both only thirteen years old yet they're battling at a level that even some jōnin aren't able to achieve." Bee just smiled, "You see, both of them are special. From a young age they've always stood out from the rest, being able to grasp in an hour what most genin would take years to be able to achieve. Take Naruto, for example. You obviously know about the Hiraishin, seeing as Minato was your sensei. Most people don't even begin to understand how it works. Naruto, on the other hand, understood it and was able to even use it after a month of dedicated and focused practice." Kakashi's visible eye widened. "A month? He was able to use the Hiraishin after a mere month of practicing it?"

"Yeah. Not entirely sure how, but he was massively struggling with it for a while. Then, all of a sudden, he wakes up one day and is just able to do it. No struggle, no hesitation, he just _does_ it like he's been able to do it his whole life. Yugito ain't bad either. She has an extreme amount of chakra control which, considering her own chakra reserves make some kage envious, is ridiculous. She doesn't have quite enough discipline to be a medical ninja, but if she wanted to do it she probably could."

Kakashi could only gawk at the capabilities the two genin before him possessed. _Minato,_ he quickly called out to no one in particular, _I hope you're watching him. He's well on his way to surpassing you._

* * *

Sakura watched Sasuke sit in silence on the roof, enjoying the sunset. Any other day she would've been screaming inwardly and immediately rushed to join him in an attempt to win him over. Today, though, something felt different. Instead of just assuming that he was in a good mood, something told her that he was quietly mourning something. She knew the answer; his clan. _Sasuke-kun hasn't even talked about it with anyone, _she quickly realized. Then, steeling herself, she jumped up onto the roof and quietly sat down next to him. He turned and met her gaze and she was shocked to see that tears were drying. "Did you need something, Sakura?" he asked quietly.

"No," she responded, "but it looks like you do." This caught his attention. "Sasuke, in the seven years that you've had to live with this you haven't once talked to someone about it. Living with all that pain isn't good for you. I understand that you want to avenge your clan and that you won't stop until your brother is dead by your hand but, Sasuke, if you keep bottling up the pain and hatred you feel you'll lose yourself." Sakura watched for a reaction – any reaction – that would at least make what she said worth it. What she hadn't expected was for the tears to start anew. _Oh great Sakura, you made it worse. So much for being a comforting and supportive teammate,_ she thought bitterly.

"I was weak," he muttered through sobs. "I was weak and I couldn't do a _damn _thing about it! That bastard said he was just 'testing' himself, seeing what he could do, and that killing our entire clan was the only way to do it! He told me to hate, to despise, to revel in my anger and use it as a weapon. And I'm going to. He will _die_. I will make sure of that."

"Sasuke you were six years old! How could you have stopped him? Your mom and dad would be proud to know that you haven't given up. They'd be proud to see how far you've come since that day. You can't blame yourself for inexperience. You said it yourself, your brother made ANBU by the time he was thirteen!" Sakura stated, fierce determination creeping into her voice. Then she added, "And sitting around distancing yourself from others is not the way to deal with the sorrow you feel. Sai and I are your teammates, yeah, but we also want to be your friends. So talk to us! We're here for you! We may not understand how you feel, but we do know that you are silently suffering."

He was silent for a while. Sakura was afraid that she had said something wrong but then he did something she was not expecting. He turned and hugged her, tight. "Sakura… Thank you. I'll be the first to admit I thought you were incredibly annoying and hated the whole 'fangirl' routine, but this side of you… It's making me realize that I was wrong for closing myself to the world." Sakura smiled, hugging him back. She should've been jumping around, screaming, squealing that '_Sasuke-kun'_ was hugging her but, for some reason, she wasn't. When they parted Sasuke leapt down from the roof. "Where are you going?" Sakura called. He turned around and smiled. "You were right about one thing. Making friends is the way to get stronger, so I'm gonna go have that spar with Naruto now. Go find Sai, I'm sure he'll want to say something to me."

* * *

Yugito was brought back to reality when Naruto performed another jutsu. Her eyes widened, realizing that the entire field was covered in water. _This isn't gonna end well,_ she realized.

"**Suiton: Water Dragon!**"

A huge dragon made of water formed out of the water and roared right at Yugito. Her response was a rather fearful _gulp._ He'd never had access to this much water before. The water dragon surged toward her. She attempted to dodge to the right, but the jutsu was too fast. It caught her and sent her flying backward. She slammed into a tree, wincing in pain as she felt her body cry out in extreme protest. **_Kitten, I hate to say it, but if you can't call on me you might as well give up. I don't want to have to heal too much if that Zabuza guy shows up again all pissed off._** Yugito sighed. Tabi was right. She threw up her hands. "Alright Naruto-kun, you win." If one were unable to detect the depression in Yugito's voice it would be argued that said person would be considered a complete social moron. Naruto grinned as he walked up to her and sat down next to her. "You've gotten a lot faster. You surprised me multiple times throughout the match."

"Yeah well it wasn't good enough," Yugito groaned, defeatism flowing from every word. "I don't get it, Naruto-kun. How the hell are you this strong? What drives you to be able to have that much power?" Naruto smiled lightly as he put an arm around her. "I don't know how I have this much power, honestly. I truthfully don't know. As for what drives me…" She turned to look at him, her violet eyes locking with his cerulean. He seemed to be gathering the courage to say something. **_Oh my, kitten. If I had to guess, he's just about to declare his undying love for you, _**Tabi teased. Yugito mentally scowled at her bijū. _Yeah right. I doubt it. He's probably going to explain how he would do anything to protect his frie-_

"You do, Yugi-chan. You are what drives me to be stronger. You mean the world to me. Ever since we were kids I've always had a strange feeling around you, like something fluttering in my stomach. For the longest time I never knew what it was. But I finally figured it out. Yugi-chan, you are the single most important person in my life. You mean the world to me and if anything were to happen to you I'd lose it. Yeah the villagers in Kumo respect me, but I never got along with the other kids. You were my first friend. But…" Naruto broke eye contact to look at the sky, "…I've realized it's more than that. You're incredibly smart, really strong, extremely funny, affectionate, gorgeous and, most of all, the single nicest person in the world. I understand if you don't feel the same way, Yugi-chan, but I'm not going to deny how I feel. Yugi-chan, I love you." Silence filled the air. Naruto's nerves started acting up. _She doesn't feel the same way, does she… _he realized. Then he felt her arms around him, and she moved onto his lap, straddling him. There were tears streaming down her face. His eyes widened, about to ask a question but found he couldn't. He realized why. Her lips were locked with his. _Oh my god Yugi-chan is kissing me, _was all he could think.

_I'm kissing Naruto!_ Yugito exclaimed, feeling as if she had just wound up on top of cloud nine. _I'm kissing Naruto, and, on top of that, he said he loves me! Oh, kami, please don't let this end… _She chose to ignore Matatabi, who was suggesting she do more than just kiss him. The kiss was like nothing either of them had experienced. It was electrifying and calming all at the same time. Yugito felt as if she were being melted down and rebuilt stronger than before. Naruto felt as if his entire body was on burning with a cool fire. Their chakra began to mingle, tickling both of them, teasing them, comforting them. It was as if their chakra was being molded into pure passion and relayed to the other person through their lips.

Of course it was at that moment that Sasuke, Sakura and Sai all arrived at what minutes ago was a full-blown battleground. Each member of Team Seven had a different reaction. Sakura's eyes were glazing over. _That's so romantic! _she squealed. She stole a glance at Sasuke, wishing that they were in that position. Sai was analyzing the situation as if it were a book. _I see. So it appears that sexual tension is built up through battle, and when the battle is complete that tension is released._ Sasuke, surprisingly, assessed the situation almost perfectly. _It seems that Naruto's reason for being that strong is due to his love for his teammate. What was her name again?_ he wondered briefly. He turned and met Sakura's gaze, causing her to blush and immediately look away. _I wonder, Itachi… Were you wrong? From what it looks like it is love, not hatred, that strengthens a shinobi… Could I possibly be following the wrong belief? Were you trying to mislead me? _He sighed mentally. Maybe, just maybe, he would give Sakura a chance. Sasuke returned his attention to the two Kumo nin.

When Naruto and Yugito finally unlocked their lips both were blushing profusely. "That was…" Yugito tried to say, not able to find the right word. Naruto completed the thought. "Perfect." She smiled. That was when she noticed the three behind her. She sighed and Naruto rolled his eyes. Before she could completely stand Naruto pulled her down to kiss her cheek, whispering, "We'll have to go out when we get back to Kumo. Just to two of us. Okay?" Yugito smiled and nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes. The pair then turned to face the Konoha ninja. That's when Naruto remembered why they were there. "Oh! Right! Sasuke wanted a spar with me!" Sasuke grinned. "Yeah. I've been wanting to test your theory with you." Naruto nodded. He turned to say something to Yugito but immediately found her lips on his again. This kiss was far shorter, but the meaning was not lost, "Good luck, I love you."

Naruto and Sasuke took positions on the opposite sides of the field. Things were just about to get interesting. "Alright Sasuke, seeing as you challenged me you may have the first attack." Sasuke smirked. "Your funeral." He made a quick chain of handsigns.

"**Katon: Grand Fireball!**"

Naruto smiled, immediately dodging to the left. _I don't have to use too much on this fight, _he thought briefly. Sasuke leapt into the air, running through another sequence of handsigns.

"**Katon: Phoenix Sage Fire!**"

A dozen or so fireballs rushed toward him. As they got closer, Naruto noticed each one contained a shuriken spinning rapidly. He quickly maneuvered his way through the barrage, skillfully dodging each fireball. Sasuke suddenly appeared before him. _He's fast,_ Naruto realized. _Good, that means he's adapting to whatever sudden changes his body is going through._ Sasuke and Naruto engaged in an intense taijutsu match, one where Sasuke was taking quite a few hits. He wasn't able to track Naruto's movements. _This is hopeless,_ he analyzed. _He's too fast and I can't keep up with his movements. I have to resort to ninjutsu. _Sasuke kicked himself away from Naruto, chaining handsigns together.

"**Katon: Dragon Flame Song!**"

A half a dozen fiery dragons erupted from Sasuke's mouth, all rushing toward Naruto at high speeds. Naruto's eyes widened. Now he was sure Sasuke was undergoing the same change he did. Sakura and Sai, on the other hand, were both impressed. "He's never done anything like that before." Sai muttered. Sakura, on the other hand, was speechless. Naruto wove around all the dragon heads, each one exploding as it missed. That's when he realized he was cornered. Naruto spun around to meet Sasuke's eyes as he finished another chain of handsigns. _I have no choice, _Naruto realized. _I have to reveal my trump card._

"**Katon: Great Dragon Fire!**"

A massive amount of fire surged toward Naruto, taking the shape of a dragon. Sasuke sidestepped a kunai thrown through the fire. The kunai landed harmlessly at Sasuke's feet. Naruto, however, smiled. _Bingo._ Sasuke smirked, proud of his new jutsu. Naruto couldn't do a damn thing to stop it, he guessed, from how he reacted. That's when he felt a knee connect with his stomach. His eyes widened. He hacked up blood. He flew back and rolled before stopping just before the water. Everyone else's eyes were wide as dinner plates.

"How did he do that!?" Sakura shouted, completely stunned. "That, Sakura, was the Hiraishin." She spun around to see Kakashi standing behind her. "It was Minato Namikaze, our Yondaime Hokage, who so famously used that jutsu after it was forgotten for seventy years. The Nidaime Hokage was the first to use it. It's an S-rank technique that allows the user to teleport from one point to another using a special seal formula. The fact that Naruto knows it is incredible. But I suppose considering that Naruto is Minato's son that it makes sense."

Sasuke stood up and smiled at Naruto. "Looks like you still outmatch me," he muttered, breathing heavily. His eyes widened and he fell to his knees, screaming in agony as he held his head. Everyone ran over to him, extreme concern evident on their faces. "Sasuke-kun!?" Sakura asked. Sasuke could barely hear her. The pain was deafening. His eyes felt like they were being incinerated. He was shaking uncontrollably. Then it stopped. "Sasuke, what's wrong?" demanded Kakashi. Slowly Sasuke looked up to meet Kakashi's gaze. _Everyone_ gasped. "What?" Sasuke asked, "What's wrong?"

"Sasuke, have you ever used the Sharingan before?" Kakashi inquired.

"No… Why?"

Kakashi tensed. "Sasuke, I don't know how you did it, but you just awakened your Sharingan. A fully matured Sharingan. A Sharingan with all three tomoe." Sasuke's eyes widened. "What?"

"It looks like Sasuke's constant headaches had a reason." Sai reasoned. Naruto nodded. He had suspected something like this would happen, but a _fully developed_ Sharingan? What was going on? Sasuke, on the other hand, was ecstatic. _A fully matured Sharingan? Already? That changes things quite a bit. Hn, maybe training with Naruto isn't a bad idea after all… And, you know, he seems friendly. Sakura was right, I should start making some more friends. _Sasuke's train of thought was interrupted when his stomach growled. Everyone started laughing. Before he could try making some witty remark, Yugito's and Naruto's stomachs both growled as well. Naruto spoke up, "I guess we're starving. Let's go back to Tazuna's for some food!"

* * *

Dinner was already prepared when they arrived back at Tazuna's house. Instead of each team remaining segregated, as they had the night prior, each person was sitting next to a different member. Yugito and Sakura were both giggling silently, seeming to be exchanging notes. "So, Yugito, you and Naruto finally, ah, hit it off?" Sakura asked. Yugito nodded. "Yeah, to be honest though, I've liked him for a while. I think he's like me for the same amount of time. He's just shy when it comes to things like that. I don't blame him, I am too."

"So what's your secret? What made him finally declare his love for you?" Sakura asked. Yugito immediately understood why she was asking. "To be honest, Sakura, the trick is not fawning over them. In the shinobi world the one thing that shows a person how much you care for them is how strong you would become to protect them. That's why a fangirl never gets the guy they're fangirling over. To the guy it just seems like they're a nuisance and he'll ignore them to keep himself training to be strong. If you really want to win _his_ heart," she quickly glanced at Sasuke, "you're going to have to make yourself as strong as possible. If you really want him to take an interest in you then you're going to have to be able to kick his ass."

"But how do I go about doing that? I have some of the lowest chakra reserves in Konoha," Sakura pointed out, dejectedly. Yugito grinned, "Hey, some of the scariest people I know happen to be medical ninja, and you don't need massive kage-level chakra reserves to do that. From what I've been told you have some of the greatest chakra control out of your entire graduating class. You have _all_ the makings of being an incredible medical kunoichi." Sakura perked up at this. "Do you think I could become as strong as, say, Konoha's Tsunade?"

"With enough dedication and hard work I bet you could. Besides, it'd be great for your team to have a medical ninja with your composition." Curiosity settled on Sakura's features, "What do you mean?"

"Any successful ninja team has a strong specialized support role. There are three possibilities to fill that role. The first possibility is a medical ninja. If you have a strong front line assault and someone who prefers long ranged combat, such as your team's case with Sasuke and Sai, a medical ninja can keep the front liner healthy and fighting while he or she is keeping your opponent too distracted to handle the long ranged fighter. The second possibility is a strong strategist. To be honest, a strategist can really be omni-functional, working perfectly with any team composition if he or she knows their team's strengths and weaknesses perfectly. The stronger the strategist the fewer the injuries, which in turn means less need for medical attention." Sakura nodded, immediately realizing why the Ino-Shika-Cho combo seemed to work so perfectly. Yugito continued, "The final possibility is, oddly enough, an assassin. The assassin synergizes incredibly well with two strong front line assault-types. While your two seemingly biggest threats hold the attention of your opponent, the assassin will sneak into the back and start quietly dropping people one at a time. The assassin usually sucks at straight up fights, but they're incredibly capable one-on-one."

Sakura smiled, "So how is your team comprised?"

"To be honest our team is unique. Naruto and I can both be considered front-line assault types or long ranged fighters. Omoi is actually our specialist, and he fulfills the roles of both the strategist and the assassin." Sakura nodded. _So that's why they're so successful. They can adapt to practically any situation. _Then something occurred to her. "What if either you or Naruto get really injured?"

"That's the other unique thing we both have going for us. Our healing factor is off the charts. Something that would take a normal person a few weeks to heal we can have fixed in a couple days." Sakura's jaw dropped. "That's… incredibly useful," she quickly realized. Yugito smiled and nodded.

While the girls were discussing both boys and team styles, Naruto and Sasuke were having their own thought-provoking conversation. "So Naruto," Sasuke began, "what is it that drives you to become stronger?" Naruto grinned, "The will to protect those I care about."

"But what if they were taken from you? What if you knew who killed them?" Sasuke inquired.

Naruto thought for a moment before answering. "To be honest I'd be pissed. I'd want to avenge them as soon as possible. But I'd also know that the people that I'd be avenging wouldn't want me to wallow in hatred and sorrow. They'd want me to move on, find someone else to help me recover and rationally think about my life. Why do you ask?"

"Seven years ago everything I knew was taken from me. My entire clan was wiped out in a single night."

"I heard about that. The 'Uchiha Massacre', correct?"

Sasuke nodded. "The entire catastrophe was orchestrated by one man. His name is Itachi Uchiha, and before that night he was my kind, protective and loving older brother."

"Why did he do it?" Naruto asked.

"He said he wanted to 'test' himself, to see just what he could do. When I found out he decided to spare my life on a whim. His exact words were," Sasuke steeled himself, remembering that night in full gory, vivid detail, "If you want to kill me then you must hate me, despise me and live in an unsightly way. Flee, cling to your wretched life, and then some day, when you possess the same eyes that I have, seek me out."

"That's a load of crap." Naruto said, bluntly. Sasuke immediately turned and cautiously met Naruto's gaze. "What do you mean?"

"From what I read Itachi was one of the strongest shinobi of his time, making Konoha's ANBU Black Ops by thirteen years old. If he killed your whole clan there had to have been an actual reason, not just 'I'm testing myself'. And he's also wrong that you have to live in an unsightly way. The Shodaime Hokage, Hashirama Senju, fought for peace. He didn't hate, he loved with every fiber of his being. He was considered a god among shinobi, so he had to have been doing something right. Don't listen to your brother, Sasuke. If hatred is what he told you to feel, find something that you love far more than yourself. Find someone that truly makes you happy. When you do, you'll train yourself to become stronger in order to protect that person or people."

Sasuke wanted to protest, he wanted to deny it, but something prevented him from doing so. As he studied Naruto's features and realized how serious he was, Sasuke came to one conclusion. _He's right. How have I been so blind? _Sasuke smiled. "You know what, Naruto? You're right. But there's something else. From now on you and I are rivals. I'm going to make it my goal to finally catch up to you and then kick your ass." Naruto chuckled, "Fine, but can we still be friends?"

"Sure, I guess." Sasuke replied, trying to seem disappointed. Naruto started laughing, signaling his attempt had failed. Truthfully Sasuke was starting to respect Naruto a lot. Never before had he felt this level of kinship with anyone other than Itachi. _Hell, he might as well be my long-lost brother, _Sasuke mused.

Naruto was about to clear his dishes when Sai finally asked the question Naruto had hoped he'd forgotten.

"So, Naruto, you never answered my question from earlier. If you are the son of our late Yondaime Hokage how is it you came to be a ninja from Kumo?"

Everyone froze, and suddenly all eyes were on Naruto. He laughed nervously. "It's one of those long stories. But I suppose you're going to have to hear it from the beginning. Thirteen years ago on October Tenth the being known as the Kyūbi no Kitsune was unleashed upon Konoha. You pretty much know how that night went down, but what people don't know is that was the same night I was born. My mother, Kushina Uzumaki, had practically just given birth to me when the Kyūbi attacked. When it was finally forced out of the village my dad showed up. He took the Kyūbi away from the village with his teleportation technique, and my mom decided she wasn't going to let him fight alone. Together they defeated the Kyūbi, but it cost them both their lives. The Raikage of Kumo was there that night as well, as he had just earlier that day signed a permanent alliance agreement with Konoha to effectively end the war. My dad told the Raikage that he was scared that Iwagakure would find out about me and send assassins. Iwa was still bitter about their defeat in the Third Shinobi War in which my dad had practically taken them all on and won by himself. The Raikage agreed and took me to raise me." Sai nodded, accepting this answer as plausible. Team B had noticed that Naruto left out the part where the Kyūbi had been sealed in him. That little detail might scare them.

"My dad died a hero that day. I'm proud to be a Namikaze."

"There's no such thing as heroes." Everyone turned around to see a child who didn't appear to be more than seven or eight years old. "Inari!" Tsunami called, startled at his sudden appearance. "You're home!"

Inari, however, ignored it. "You're all going to die. Gatō is going to kill you all and there's nothing you can do to stop it. You should just give up and go home, there's no hope for you."

"Inari," Naruto started, "I don't know why you believe that. Gatō is weak and spineless, and we're not leaving until you are free of his corrupt grasp."

"You're all stupid. Gatō will just kill you. Don't say I didn't warn you!" With that, Inari ran upstairs. Tsunami ran up after him, clearly worried about the boy.

"You must forgive the boy," Tazuna pleaded. "His will has been broken. Gatō has done a number on this village, you see."

Naruto sighed. He wasn't angry, but he clearly wasn't happy. "What broke his will like that?" he asked. Tazuna frowned and lowered his head. "If you want to know that then I must tell you about Kaiza, the boy's father. You see, Kaiza was a hero in this village. Everyone looked up to him. He was also the only one who stood up to Gatō. Unfortunately, Gatō has always been a wealthy and powerful individual. It was after a particularly successful protest that Gatō decided he wanted to make an example of Kaiza to show the village what would happen if they continued to cross him. They tied the Kaiza up to a post and found Inari, taking him to where his father was and forced him and the rest of the village to watch. First Gatō's goons whipped him, then they chopped off both of his arms, after that they beheaded him and finally they torched the body. Inari has been scarred ever since that day. He hasn't ever smiled or laughed. His dreams were crushed that day. He has no hope left."

Naruto growled, a hatred for Gatō quickly surfacing. He rose from the table and started for the door. "Where are you going?" Sakura asked.

"Out. I need to cool down. The fact that Gatō could ruin a child's life like that, terrorize a village and its people like that… It's abhorrent. If I don't calm down I might do something I regret later." With that, Naruto left. Kakashi seemed worried and was about to follow him when Yugito stopped him. "Naruto has a giant heart. Hearing about something like that pisses him off to no end. He's going to go take out his anger in the only way he knows how; training. If you follow him he might accidentally attack you. Just let him go, I promise he'll be back by tomorrow morning." Kakashi nodded, obviously not convinced. The rest of the night was uneventful, and as Yugito looked out her window to watch the stars all she could think about was what she was going to do to Gatō when she got her hands on him.

* * *

Naruto awoke the next morning realizing he hadn't gone back to Tazuna's house and was in some forest clearing. _I must've passed out… I hope they didn't worry about me._ That's when he felt a presence. He leapt up, kunai in hand, to face the intruder. "Who are you!?" he demanded. The girl – or at least, someone who looked feminine – laughed a bit. "Relax! I'm not an enemy. I'm just here to pick a few flowers for a friend of mine." Cautiously, Naruto let his guard down. _Something about this person…_ He decided to play along. He watched the stranger begin to pick some flowers and subtly try to grab some herbs as well. "My name is Haku. What's your's?" the person asked.

"Naruto." The person giggled. "You're pretty handsome, Naruto. Do you have someone in your life?" Naruto grinned inwardly. _Now I know something is up. This person's face may seem feminine but, all my time training with Ero-sennin, I can tell their figure is very much masculine. _"I do," he replied. "Her name is Yugito." The boy-feigning-feminism nodded. "I see. Beautiful name. I'm quite jealous. Anyway, I hope I see you again!" He turned to leave.

"Send Zabuza my regards. Oh, and, keep acting like that and people will assume you're homosexual. Not that there's a problem with that, but I honestly doubt you actually are." Haku froze. "How did you know?" he asked. "Easy," Naruto replied. "Most of what you picked has medicinal properties, all of which are meant to help heal critical wounds faster. And that act may fool other people into believing you are a girl, but I happen to have one of the biggest perverts in the world as my godfather. I know what a girl around my age should look like in terms of figure." Haku spun around and hurled a few senbon at Naruto, who calmly dodged them. "Relax, Haku. It'd be pointless you kill you. I assume Gatō hired both you and Zabuza to prevent the bridge from being constructed? Well, let me explain something to you; Gatō is using you. He probably planned to kill you both if you succeeded as to avoid paying you. Just think about that."

"Why would you attempt to warn me of something such as this? I am your enemy."

Naruto shrugged. "Because something tells me you and Zabuza aren't bad people. Something tells me you're doing what you have to do in order to survive. I will kill when it is necessary, but I doubt you two are actually horrible enough to kill." Haku frowned, "Regardless, we need the money. What would we do if we were to simply abandon this mission? You know as well as I do that Kirigakure is hunting Zabuza, we'll never be able to escape." Naruto smiled. "You know, Kumo and Konoha could both use someone so expertly gifted with kenjutsu, and something about you seems special as well. Do you happen to have some unique kekkei genkai?"

"Hyōton, the ability to manipulate and create ice." Haku answered. Naruto nodded, "Kumo would gladly welcome you with open arms with that kekkei genkai. And as it stands right now, Kiri isn't on the best terms with Kumo to begin with. We're constantly battling over this one island that borders both out nations." Haku frowned, "And what about Gatō? Surely he'll be prepared to attack should we betray him, assuming he is as ruthless as you make him out to be."

"Oh, believe me, I have plenty of ideas as to how to deal with that bastard. I have a few choice words for him, all of which involving doton, fūton, jinton, katon, raiton and suiton. You leave him to me. Just show up at the bridge in four days' time." Haku nodded. "I shall inform Zabuza of this. You are right about one thing, Naruto-san. He's not a bad person, he simply disagreed with the Yondaime Mizukage's methods and policies. A new place to call home would be much appreciated." Naruto nodded and they parted ways. _How am I gonna tell the others?_ he wondered.

* * *

While Naruto was having his confrontation with Haku, Yugito and Sakura both went into the village with Tazuna to pick up food. What they both witnessed nearly brought them to tears. Buildings were in shambles. Merchant stalls were practically bare of any wares and goods. People were on their hands and knees, begging others for food. A few people were holding up signs that read _'Will Work for Food'._ As they passed alleyways they saw large groups of people bundled up who appeared to be deathly ill. Children were crying from starvation. Tazuna noticed their expressions and sighed, "This is why the bridge is so important. This is why we need to complete it. We cannot survive like this." Sakura and Yugito both nodded. Each was having their own internal struggle, Yugito trying to calm herself down and stop herself from going berserk and Sakura trying to think of something to help these people in the meantime.

When the girls and Tazuna returned home Naruto was waiting for them. He nodded to them and asked them to meet with the rest of the team at the dining table. When the groceries (what little they had been able to get) were placed in the kitchen they both sat down. Everyone from both teams was there. Naruto stood and started pacing before speaking. "So, I had a run-in with that 'hunter-nin' that took Zabuza away. I was right, Zabuza is alive and that person was certainly not a hunter-nin. In fact, his name is Haku and he possesses a very special kekkei genkai. Ice manipulation, or hyōton." When Naruto informed them of his run-in, they all tensed. "But, don't worry. There wasn't any fighting," he reassured, omitting the part where Haku threw a handful of senbon at him, "in fact, we came to an understanding. Haku and Zabuza are both well aware of Gatō's intentions, but they have no choice because they have to trust they will get paid. Zabuza, as you know, is a wanted criminal from Kiri. That's when I presented them the option to surrender and join Kumo." Yugito gasped. "Join Kumo!?"

"Yes. It isn't a secret that Kumo lacks any special kekkei genkai or any clans, and when Haku is older he can create his own clan and introduce a new bloodline to our village. Zabuza, on the other hand, is only wanted for fleeing Kiri. He doesn't agree with their Mizukage's regime. Despite the fact that the Yondaime was recently killed and the Godaime has been nominated Zabuza doesn't want to take the risk that the newly elected Mizukage is just as bad, if not worse." Yugito relented, seeing the logic behind Naruto's revelation.

"Then what is the plan, Naruto?" Kakashi asked. Naruto smiled. "In four days' time when the bridge is complete and Zabuza has fully recovered he and Haku will meet us. I am going to assume that Gatō will be there waiting for it to happen, so when he does show up the ten of us can easily take him and whatever he brings at us down. In the worst case scenario Gatō will have a private army of low level chūnin nukenin behind him. In the best case they will be untrained mercenaries who have no shinobi training."

Bee spoke up. "Lil' Nine that plan seems fine, but I can't seem to shake this one question of mine. Zabuza is wanted and he'll surely be haunted by new Kiri hunters who will feel taunted. It leads me to believe this theory that all of Kiri will decide to declare war, and I know for a fact that would be a chore." Team Seven glanced at Bee incredulously. "What did he just say?" Sakura asked, looking at Omoi. In turn, Omoi smiled. "See, Bee believes he can be a famous rapper. That's why he talks like that. As for what he said, he basically just pointed out that Kiri might go to war with Kumo over this." Sasuke and Sai both nodded at the possibility. Naruto grinned, "See, that's the best part. As one of the Seven Swordsmen, Zabuza would _never_ part with Kubikiribōchō unless he had died and was unable to retrieve it. That's where Team Seven comes in. You guys are gonna spread the word that Zabuza is dead and that you've both destroyed his body so Kiri didn't need to worry about information being gleaned from it _and_ taken his prized sword as a trophy back to Konoha. Then, after a few months, you'll send it to Kumo in a sealing scroll. Meanwhile, Zabuza will have disguised himself and Haku and gotten to Kumo. It's a perfect and flawless plan."

Kakashi was impressed. "You really thought of everything, didn't you? Well, I guess it's settled. Naruto, Omoi, Sai, Sasuke, you guys go and set traps in the woods on the other side of the bridge. Sakura, Yugito, myself and Bee here will prepare some traps by the bridge itself. If we want to be absolutely sure Kiri doesn't hear of this then we're going to have to make sure that there are absolutely no survivors on Gatō's side, understand?" They nodded and stood to leave. "Thank you so much for all of your help. I'm sorry I doubted you at first." Tazuna said. Naruto nodded. "Don't even worry about it, Tazuna. We promise to liberate you guys from that scumbag Gatō." With that, all eight of the shinobi left to begin laying traps.

* * *

Four days passed quickly. The bridge was finally complete and both Team Seven and Team B were sitting around, waiting on Haku and Zabuza. Naruto had elected to stay behind, believing Gatō would certainly try something with Inari and Tsunami. His suspicions were proven correct when two thugs began banging down the door of the house. Naruto hid in the shadows, waiting for the appropriate moment. When the door had been destroyed, the two thugs barged in. "This place is niiiice, ain't it?" the first thug asked.

"Yeah, and look, we already got a pretty lady to entertain us and a brat we can send off to be our own personal servant!" the second one exclaimed. Inari looked both of them in the eyes and proclaimed, "Neither of you are laying a hand on her, got it!?"

"And who's gonna stop us, kid? You? Don't be fuckin' stupid, you have a whole life ahead of ya! Plus I don't want to have to kill our manual labor!" Both thugs erupted into howling laughter.

"I'm not gonna stop you, he is." Inari stated calmly, pointing behind them. Both thugs whirled around ready to fight. They never got the chance. They were both dropped by kunai to the throat. Inari watched in awe as Naruto retrieved his two kunai and smiled at him. "Never give up, Inari. Don't let anything stop you from fulfilling your dreams. Don't let anyone put you down and spit on you. As long as you draw breath you can still make a difference and protect the ones you love." Inari hugged Naruto. He patted Inari on the back and added, "Protect your mom, okay? Don't let any more thugs even think about laying a finger on her. There are heroes, Inari. And you're one of them. Got it?" Inari smiled.

"Thank you, Naruto-san. We are forever in your debt," Tsunami said. Naruto grinned, nodded and left. With luck he could still make it to the bridge before Gatō showed up.

* * *

Back at the bridge things hadn't really gotten that interesting. Both teams were still sitting around waiting for Zabuza and Haku to show up. They were about to get up and leave when, finally, the two for whom this whole plan had been constructed finally arrived. Zabuza calmly walked forward. "So, I hear I have a spot waiting for me in Kumo, that right?" Yugito stepped forward and nodded. Zabuza frowned, "Alright then, seeing as I have no better alternative. What's the plan and what do I gotta do to finally actually be able to have a life?"

"Well, first you have to trust us, okay?" Yugito asked. When Zabuza agreed she continued, "Our plan involves making it seem like you are completely gone without a trace. In order to do that you have to give your sword to Kakashi. He's going to take it back to Konoha as a 'trophy', stating that when he defeated you he destroyed your body for Kiri and took your blade in order to keep it from falling into someone else's hands." Zabuza was about to protest before Kakashi held up a hand. "The only way to make it seem like you're dead is for your blade to no longer be in your possession. I promise, you'll get it back in four months after it seems like everything has calmed down. In the meantime you'll follow the Kumo team back to Kumogakure and appeal to the Raikage for citizenship and asylum. In order to get his full agreement you have to say the only way he can have Haku's kekkei genkai is if he agrees to let you be a citizen as well. Later on down the road Haku will found a clan and be able to live a proud and normal life within the walls of Kumo." Zabuza sighed and nodded. "Alright then," he said, "if that's the case I guess I agree. Just don't let anything happen to Kubikiribōchō, got it? Or else I'll personally find you and kill you." Kakashi laughed. "I promise."

"Right, so, what now?" Zabuza asked. Omoi stepped forward. "Now we wait for Gatō to show up. Seeing as he's probably going to make a personal appearance and try to fix the problem himself, I'd guess he'll be here shortly. When he does we're going to end his sorry little life and liberate this village."

"Shortly? You've gotta be kidding! I knew about this whole damn little _'plan'_ the moment you all concocted it!" shouted a voice. Sure enough, standing on the other side of the bridge with what appeared to be an army of mercenaries was a short and stocky little man. "So you're Gatō, then?" Kakashi asked. The man smirked. "The one and only. Now, sorry to cut this short, but I have a bridge to destroy. Men? Get them."

"Guess I'm not late!" Naruto called. He landed next to them, smiling like crazy. "Glad you could make it. Tsunami and Inari safe?" Sasuke asked. Naruto smiled, "Safe and sound." Then they heard a loud battlecry. Both turned to see the army of about two-hundred mercenaries charging forward. Kakashi smiled. "Shall we, Killer Bee?"

"Looks like I'll teach another rapper yet, just don't you ever forget!" Bee rapped, holding up a handsign. Kakashi, Yugito and Sakura all followed suit. Their traps activated. Large amounts of kunai were launched from nearby bushes. Paper bombs that were transformed to look like rocks began to blow up. Bola traps caught mercenaries by the legs and tripped them up. The shinobi teams sprang into action.

"**Fūton: Divine Wind!**"

Naruto created a massive wind that rushed toward the large force of mercenaries.

"**Katon: Hellfire!**"

"**Katon: Great Dragon Fire!**"

Yugito and Sasuke imbued the wind with a huge quantity of fire, turning the wind into a firestorm. Mercenaries began to fall by the dozen.

"**Hissatsu Hyōsō!**"

Haku launched dozens of icy lances toward the army. Omoi and Bee were both cutting down foes left and right. Kakashi was executing them with his **_Chidori_**. Sakura was pummeling anyone who got in her way. Gatō realized that he was severely outmatched and turned to start running when he was stopped by the massive form of a pissed off Zabuza. "Where do you think you're going?" Zabuza demanded.

"I-I'll pay you double what I promised you if you let me live!" Gatō pleaded. Zabuza took a step forward. "Triple!" Gatō cried. Zabuza took another step forward and raised his blade. "I will offer you five times what I promised before!" Gatō shouted. He was about to raise the stakes again but was cleaved in half before he uttered another word. "That felt fuckin' good." Zabuza admitted.

Meanwhile the force of mercenaries realized they were absolutely screwed ten ways to Sunday. "Retreat!" they called. They started charging into the woods to try to escape. Needless to say, they didn't make it very far. Sasuke, Sai, Naruto and Omoi all held up handsigns and dozens of screams filled the air as they were mowed down by more kunai and paper bombs. When the smoke cleared not a single mercenary was left alive. Gatō and his 'private army' had been annihilated.

When Naruto turned around he noticed the entire village had gathered on the other side of the bridge, Inari leading them. When the shock passed, the small army of villagers roared with excitement. They were free. All of the shinobi who had just liberated them smiled. "Looks like we won," Sasuke mused. Naruto grinned. Sakura cheered. Omoi and Sai smirked. Yugito waved.

* * *

Zabuza handed his blade to Kakashi. "I'm trusting my most prized possession to you, Kakashi. Don't you _dare_ let anyone else touch that blade." Kakashi smiled nervously and nodded. "I promise." Tazuna approached the group with one of the biggest smiles he had worn in a long time. "I can't believe it. We're free of Gatō forever! We are all forever in your debt."

"Stop it, Tazuna. You don't owe us a damn thing. We did this because no one deserves to live like you all did, to be treated like you all did. You're free now." Naruto stated, fierceness in his voice. Tazuna nodded. "And it is for that belief, Naruto, that we have decided to name this bridge the 'Great Naruto Bridge'. Again, we can't be happier for what you have done for us. Inari hasn't been this happy in a long time." Naruto smiled sheepishly as the rest of the group laughed.

"So I guess we're parting ways now?" Sasuke asked. "Looks like it, Sasuke. If you guys ever find yourselves on a mission around the border between the Lands of Fire and Lightning, look us up. Don't be a stranger now, okay?" Naruto replied. Sasuke nodded and smiled. "Next time we meet I'm going to kick your ass. Don't forget that." Naruto laughed. "We'll see, Sasuke. Take care now!"

Both groups waved their goodbyes to each other and parted ways. Team Seven began their journey back to Konoha and Team B, Zabuza and Haku began their own back to Kumo. Neither team had the slightest idea they would be seeing each other _very_ soon.

* * *

**Well I hope you enjoyed Chapter Three! I'm having a tremendous amount of fun writing this, and I'm so glad that so many of you enjoy it! Next chapter should be up in the next two to three days, I promise!**


	5. The B-rank Gone Wrong

**Hey guys! Here's chapter four for you! A quick note, this is one of the chapters in this story that is entirely of my own creation. This chapter, while loosely based around the events that took place in the anime (not the manga, there was no filler manga for this episode), is mostly original and deals with Naruto's own hidden power. This also will serve a greater purpose later on down the road for multiple characters. Also, I would like to thank all of you for your support! Like I said, this is my first fanfiction so it might be a little rough, but it will definitely improve as time goes on!**

**Inu-Neko2: They will indeed become greater friends in this AU of the story. The rivalry will obviously be there but it won't be to the point where they try killing each other every single time they meet.**

**Spartan000-BTheUnknownWarrior: Glad that you're enjoying my story this much! **

**redlox2: Not ****_quite_**** the ch****ūnin exams yet, but they're coming, I promise. I've already got the whole thing planned out ;)**

**Without further adieu, chapter four!**

* * *

The journey back to Kumo had been uneventful, much to the surprise of Team B. Not that they were complaining, of course. Upon arriving Naruto took both Zabuza and Haku to the Raikage's tower. Mabui was surprised that Naruto had brought guests, but after he explained the situation to her she asked A to grant them an immediate audience. To say A was skeptical at first would've been a massive understatement, but eventually he relented and welcomed Zabuza and Haku to Kumogakure. They were both told they had a three week probationary period before being allowed to take missions or be acknowledged as shinobi. Additionally, they had to report to an ANBU Interrogator every week on Saturday to have themselves re-evaluated and given a shorter or longer probation period, depending on how well they acted.

Naruto, true to his word, immediately took Yugito out on a date. Instead of going to Aunt G's he placed a reservation at a fancy upscale restaurant by the name of _Cloud Nine_. When he arrived to pick her up he nearly fainted from shock. She was wearing a beautiful violet mini-dress that seemed to accentuate every last feature of her body, from her very shapely legs to her beautiful hourglass figure that she had gained from hours of training. It didn't help that it seemed to emphasize her cleavage. Naruto briefly cursed Jiraiya for the little corruptive influence he had. The date had gone perfectly. Both jinchūriki had a wonderful time. Naruto had a delicious steak and Yugito felt blessed to be able to have her first lobster. She nearly died with how amazing it tasted. The rest of the night was spent walking through Kumo at a slow pace, Naruto giving his jacket to Yugito to keep her warm. They talked and talked and talked until they realized it was well past midnight. Naruto took her home, where she rewarded him for the perfect night with a passionate kiss. Tabi, of course, insisted she do something more, but Yugito ignored her and spent the rest of the night staring at the ceiling wondering how she had been so blessed as to have such a wonderful man as her boyfriend.

It was a week after Team B had returned that they were summoned to the Raikage's office again. When they arrived they were immediately ushered up to the Raikage's office by Mabui. As soon as they had all entered A's office he sighed. "I have another mission for you, if you're interested." Despite his desire to spend more time with Yugito, Naruto perked up. "What is it, A-ojiisan?"

"It's a B-rank assassination. One of the villages on the border has recently been taken over by a foreign shinobi. We're not sure who it is or why they have seemed to take an interest in this village which is why I hesitate to tell you it is a simple B-rank. Personally I believe it has to be at least an A-rank for the village's shinobi to have been defeated so easily. We have absolutely no information on him other than he seems to revel in killing and has a particular fetish for funerals." A explained. Omoi frowned, "Wait, so you're telling us we've got zero info in this guy and he was strong enough to take down a border village's entire shinobi guard?" A nodded and sighed again. "I wouldn't send you blindly into a battle you cannot win which is why if you find that this foreign shinobi is far greater than a B-rank I want you to abandon the mission and return immediately. If it turns out that you must abandon the mission I will not mark it as a failure on your record and you will still receive payment as if you had succeeded." Yugito stiffened. _That bad, huh? I don't have a good feeling about this, _she thought quickly. She wanted to turn down the mission. She wanted to tell A-sama to find another team, but she also realized that he had complete faith in them.

"We'll do it." Naruto said plainly, drawing questioning glances from both Omoi and Yugito. "We won't let you down, A-ojiisan." A nodded, "Good. The village is on the border between the Land of Waves and the Land of Lightning, just northeast of the Misty Isles. Oh, and one more thing." This drew the attention back to him. "This will be the last mission you are given for a while. As you are aware, Konohagakure has a traditional chūnin exam that they hold on a bi-annual basis, and their next exam is in a month and a half. These chūnin exams are very unique as teams from every hidden village are allowed to participate. I have decided to send you to represent Kumo. You will be the only team participating from our village. But, I can bore you with more details later. For now go home and get some rest, you leave tomorrow." Team B nodded and left.

* * *

"So we're going to Konoha?" Omoi asked. "I guess that means we'll see Team Seven again, right?" Naruto nodded, secretly excited to see the village where he was born. Yugito, however, was not paying attention. She was lost deep in her own thoughts. _The village we're going to borders the Land of Water and, more importantly, Kirigakure. Are they finally going to war with us? Do they know about Zabuza and Haku? _The thought disturbed her. **_Kitten, if I told you that war was a rare occurrence I would be lying through my teeth. This mission could very well mean the difference between another war between you humans and keeping this brief period of peace. I promise, kitten, that I will do whatever I can to help you. The last thing I want is for you to be involved in something that could possibly kill you. I've actually grown to like you, even care about you._** It was times like these that Yugito truly appreciated her bijū. Tabi could be very serious when she wanted to be. Unfortunately, that was a rare occurrence. But the last bit of her speech warmed Yugito's heart. _Being a jinchūriki isn't so bad,_ she mused. _It means that I have someone to keep me company and a close friend._ Tabi sighed, **_Aw, kitten you're making me blush. However, don't think I won't keep invading your dreams and placing Naruto there. Naked. Hovering over you._** Yugito was horrified. You're _the reason I keep having those dreams? Kami, Tabi, what am I going to do with you?_ Her response was what seemed to be simultaneous purring and laughter.

Team B decided to split ways and head home to prepare. All of them, save Bee, were barely able to sleep. Anxiety was gnawing at all of them. The first thing they had to do when they got to this village was figure out who the hell it was that they were up against. When they finally met up in the morning at Kumo's gates everyone was on edge. Omoi seemed particularly nervous and, unfortunately, his nerves caused him to exaggerate quite a bit. "What if our target is secretly an S-rank criminal? Then he would be able to kill Bee, and then he'd be able to easily kill both Yugito and Naruto, and then it'd be up to me to finish him but I wouldn't be able to do it because I had failed my friends, but then I'd gain some super awesome power and kill him anyway, but then I'd grow insane and turn into a hermit living in the hills-"

"Will you shut it, Omoi?" Yugito demanded. "There is no way our target is an S-rank criminal. We'd have been told immediately if our target was that powerful. Just… calm down."

"Yugito is right," Naruto chimed in. "S-rank criminals are immediately recognizable. We wouldn't be sent into a slaughter like that." Unbeknownst to any member of Team B, Omoi was not far from the truth.

* * *

The journey to the village took a day. When they arrived they were greeted by no one. Everyone was inside. No one wanted to be caught dead on the streets, and Team B was not sure why. "Why is everyone indoors?" Omoi asked. "I don't know," Naruto replied earnestly. He spotted an old man walking with a cane. Quickly, Naruto rushed toward him. "Old man! Hey! Can you tell us why everyone is hiding inside?" Naruto asked. He got no answer from him, but instead was disturbed by his muttered rambling. "No hope… No more funerals… Lightning God… No escape… No hope…" Naruto was about to stop the old man forcefully when he heard someone else speak.

"You're not going to get any answers out of Old Kazami. He's been like that ever since our _new overlord_ arrived four weeks ago." Team B turned to inspect the man. He was slightly well dressed, haggard and his face was gaunt. It appeared as if he hadn't slept in weeks and had barely eaten anything for the past few days. "Who are you?" Yugito asked.

"Name is Uragi. I _used_ to be this village's mayor, but ever since _he _arrived I've been relegated to being nothing more than someone who warns off unsuspecting travelers." Uragi said, bitterly.

"I'm sorry, Uragi, but who is _him_?" Omoi asked.

"No one knows who he is. He wears a full coat all the time. But everyone here fears him. He arrived here four weeks ago, immediately causing trouble and proclaiming that he was the town's new leader. The shinobi around here didn't take too kindly to that. They tried fighting him but, in what seemed like the blink of an eye, they all fell. The invader was quite literally calling lightning down on them. Right after that is when the funerals began."

"Funerals?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah. For the first week it seemed like there was at least two a day. The next week it was one a day. Last week it was one every other day. We've had two so far this week. The guy is sick and twisted. He'll kill someone on a whim and then have a funeral for them. The guy is a fuckin' ass, too. He cries and everything, pretending like he deeply cared about them. But he _enjoys_ it. He enjoys these funerals and the killing." Uragi explained.

"What is so important about this town?" Omoi asked. "I mean, yeah, it's on the border we share with Kiri, but what else? Strategically there is no defensible position against a counterattack that could be built and it's clear that it's not a military outpost." Uragi sighed, "This town is one of the biggest goldmines in the entire Land of Lightning. It isn't the only source of the metal, but it sure is a large blow to Kumogakure if we're unable to supply them."

"Well if he's only one man we can take him." Naruto stated. Uragi shook his head. "I wish that were the case. He started gathering followers, you see. He has his own little cult, and each one of them is dangerous. The cult is comprised of the shinobi in the village who surrendered to that man when they realized he could easily overwhelm them. They've even taken to claiming that, when they kill someone, they broke a 'law'. It's monstrous what they're doing. I'm sorry I can't be of more help." Naruto nodded. "It's not a problem, Uragi-san. We thank you for what you've been able to tell us. Although, one more question." Uragi raised a brow. "Do you know where we can purchase room and board?"

"_Skyfall_ is your place. It's the inn just down the road." Team B nodded and thanked him before following his directions. _Poor kids,_ Uragi thought. _They don't stand a chance against _him, _our shinobi guard didn't put up much of a fight._ He sighed and went back to repainting his house.

Team B rented two rooms for the next three nights, one for the boys and the other for Yugito. Omoi and Bee had elected to go find a place to buy food, leaving Yugito and Naruto alone. Yugito wanted to just go to sleep. She had gotten the least out of the group the night prior. Naruto, however, was trying to make progress with his bijū. He began meditating, slowly calming himself and receding into his own mind. Slowly he opened his eyes, finding himself in the familiar environment of the sewer where his bijū was imprisoned. "Hey, Furball," Naruto called out. "I know you're in there." Naruto stumbled backward a bit when a massive wave of ki hit him as a large crimson eye opened on the other side of the bars. He was used to this, though. **"I told you not to call me that, you impudent brat!"**

"Then tell me what your damn name is so I can call you something else." Naruto tried reasoning. The fox growled. **"I refuse. You are weak, pitiful, scrawny and not even worth my time. The moment I find a way to break this damn seal you are the ****_first_**** one that I am going to kill."** Naruto sighed. "I'm not afraid of you. I never will be. Stop trying to intimidate me, I won't give up on trying to get you to accept my offer of friendship." The fox scoffed. **"Friendship. Again you use that word. I am not a fool, runt. I have been on this earth for thousands of years. You can't even begin to fathom how much hatred I bear your race. You are all unintelligent sniveling cowards. The moment your kind discovered my mere existence you have done nothing but torture me, hunt me, try to control me and, in the most recent years, seal me into brats like you. It is unforgivable. We bijū are not ****_weapons_****, we are beings of pure chakra. Beings that should have been respected. But your kind has long since passed the threshold of no return. When I am finally freed of this ****_wretched_**** seal, free of you, I will personally destroy each and every last one of your proud ****_shinobi_**** villages." **The Kyūbi spat the last half of his speech. Naruto sighed, realizing that he had made absolutely zero progress in winning the Kyūbi over since the very first time he met him.

"Tell me then, Furball, why is it that Matatabi and Gyūki have both accepted their jinchūriki? Why are they both willing to forgive and forget and work as a team with my friends? What is so different about you?" Naruto demanded, his own frustration creeping into his voice. The fox began to laugh sinisterly. **"They have forgiven because they are ****_weak!_**** Their power pales in comparison to ****_mine._**** The Ichibi would have you believe that we were all born equal. He is a fool. Our power is evident by the number of tails we have!" **Naruto smirked. _So not only is my bijū hateful, but he is arrogant as well. _"Fine. Have it your way. Rot in here for another hundred years until I finally die and you get resealed into someone else. Have fun watching behind bars as I achieve my dreams on my own."

**"****I will kill you myself before your own dreams are achieved! I will rip you apart, and I will enjoy the feeling of my claws tearing you to shreds! I will not be sealed again!" **the Kyūbi roared. "Tch. Whatever." Naruto replied, turning his back to the cell.

When Naruto returned to reality he heard a massive explosion. He ran out of his room, Yugito close behind him from hers after being startled awake. When they arrived outside they saw Omoi and Bee both facing off against a cloaked opponent. _That's the guy!_ Naruto quickly realized. He turned to Yugito. "Yugi-chan, that's the guy that we were sent to kill! It's gotta be!" He immediately turned to Omoi. "What was that loud explosion?"

"That, Naruto, was the sound of natural lightning being used against us. He literally called a bolt from the sky to try killing us both. We're lucky that Bee sensed it before it happened." Naruto nodded and looked at his opponent. "Who are you!?" he demanded. The cloaked man began laughing, a hint of mania evident in his voice. "Let me give you a little demonstration of who I am! Maybe you'll figure it out! Last group that went against me were horrendously uninformed." From beneath the cloak the man revealed two wicked sharp blades that seemed to have a fang near the tip and another near the crossguard. Static electricity began to crackle on the blades' edges, and the man thrust both forward toward Naruto. Lightning surged from the blade, and the only thing that saved Naruto from being completely electrocuted was Yugito's reflexes as she tackled him to the ground. They both quickly got to their feet, Naruto's eyes wide.

"You're…" he tried speaking, unable to vocalize his words. "There is only one man capable of that level of ninkenjutsu… You're Raiga Kurosuki, S-rank shinobi from Kirigakure." The man laughed some more before pulling down his hood. Naruto knew what he looked like from Kumo's own bingo book, but seeing him in person was far more terrifying. Raiga's eyes _looked_ crazy, the dark blue eyes teeming with insanity. His dark green hair fell around his face, nearly covering his eyes. His expression bore a sinister smile, one that Naruto suspected was the smile Raiga wore at funerals. Simply seeing Raiga in person made Naruto weak in the knees. _There is absolutely no chance I can beat him. He's the second best kenjutsu master in the world behind Kisame! _Naruto quickly noted that his teammates were coming to the same conclusion.

Raiga spoke again, "It seems that you broke one of my laws! No shinobi are allowed in this village without my approval. Unfortunately for you it looks like we're going to have to hold four more funerals today. Such a shame." Naruto quickly realized there was actually remorse in Raiga's voice, as if he actually regretted his actions. _One of the biggest indicators of this man's insanity._ Before Naruto could react they were all surrounded by cloaked figures. _Looks like I finally got my wish; this mission just went from B-rank to S-rank, _Naruto thought bitterly as he prepared himself. The cloaked figures all held up their hands, revealing gauntlets that suddenly sprouted claws. "Say hello to the Kurosuki family! They'll take good care of you, don't worry!" Raiga jeered. Their claws began to simmer with electric chakra. Then all hell broke loose.

Despite their numbers it was clear that not all of them were actually well trained. Naruto managed to cut down three of his foes in the first minute, using his own Supervibrato Blades to counter their claws. He imbued wind chakra into his blades to sharpen them. The effects produced where exactly what Naruto hoped for. His opponents' claws were not strong enough to withstand the chainsaw-like power that the wind chakra produced. Two more fell to his blades. He looked around to see that his teammates all had their hands full as well. Bee was taking on seven at once, using his own unique technique that involved wielding seven of his own Supervibrato blades at once. Omoi was surrounded and fighting with everything he had, dancing around their strikes and using his katana as fluidly as if it were a deadly extension to his own arm. Yugito had begun using Matatabi's chakra to empower her taijutsu. She had sprouted her own cat claws and was felling her foes right and left. There were so many of them. _How did he recruit this many? They have to be filling their ranks with nukenin. There's no way there were this many shinobi in this village._ Chills ran through Naruto's spine when Raiga began cackling.

"I guess I'll just have to take care of this myself! You know what they say, if you want something done right, do it yourself!" He looked right at Omoi and began charging his blades. "Omoi!" Naruto called. It was too late, though. Raiga raised his blades to the sky and discharged the massive amount of lightning that had gathered in them. Immediately the sky above them crackled with incredible power. Omoi realized that he was the target, but he couldn't move in time. A bolt of lightning surged from the sky. Everything seemed to be happening in slow motion. Naruto could only watch helplessly as the bolt of lightning closed in on Omoi. Then, at last second, Bee tackled Omoi out of the way. The bolt hit Bee dead on.

"BEE!" all three genin shouted at once. Bee crumpled on the ground, electricity crackling all around his body. He wasn't moving. Naruto glared at Raiga, an intense amount of ki behind his gaze. Naruto growled. "You… You fucking BASTARD!" He charged at Raiga. Raiga, however, was just laughing. "Oh, he meant something to you, did he? I'll be sure that you're buried right next to him, then!" Naruto and Raiga's blades met, an intense battle beginning between the two. Raiga smirked as Naruto's every strike was parried away by one of his own blades. He was enjoying this. Naruto was blinded by rage, tears forming in his eyes. Wind chakra surged into Naruto's blades, driving them harder into Raiga's. "You can't win, fool! You're just delaying the inevitable! My Kiba can't be destroyed like my followers' claws can!" Electricity sparked along the edges of both Kiba. Raiga was about to start driving him back when, suddenly, Naruto's strikes seemed to speed up even further. _Impossible…_ Raiga thought. _He's starting to be faster than me!_

Naruto swung diagonally up. Unlike all of his other strikes, this one was calculated and focused. It found its mark. Raiga leapt back, cursing. He looked down to examine the wound. It was pretty bad. When Raiga looked back to meet Naruto's eyes there was something in them. For a second it seemed as if they were… crimson. Raiga shook his head. "You brat! Look what you did to me! Now I gotta go clean this up! I swear, kid, if I find you again I won't even hold a funeral for you! I'll just chop you into tiny bits and cast you into the sea!" Naruto was about to vault toward him but he was stopped by more of Raiga's followers. Raiga smirked and vanished in an electric shunshin. Naruto lost it and began swinging wildly. His opponents weren't skilled enough to deal with these blind swings, one falling with each swing. When all of his foes were killed, Naruto looked at the sky and roared a feral roar. "RAIGA KUROSUKI… I WILL FUCKING KILL YOU!"

"Naruto!" Naruto turned around to see Yugito looking at him, a concerned expression on her features. He ran over to Bee's body where Yugito and Omoi were both standing over it. Yugito pressed her fingers against Bee's neck, feeling around for his carotid artery. Her eyes widened. "There's a pulse… Bee is alive!" Her eyes shut and Naruto was about to ask a question, but he realized she was communicating with Gyūki. He hated that he wasn't able to do that. Yugito's eyes opened and she turned to look at her teammates. "Gyūki said he was able to use his own chakra to redirect the damage away from any vital organs. Bee will still be unconscious for the next two days, though. We should take him inside." Naruto nodded and the three of them lifted Bee up, carrying him into the inn.

* * *

Naruto was pacing around in his room. Bee was still unconscious from the lightning blast. _It's been a day and a half,_ Naruto growled mentally. _A day and a half since that bastard nearly killed the closest thing I have to a brother._ Yugito was currently replacing the washcloth on his head. She was hoping she could keep his body temperature cool as Gyūki's chakra healed all of the damage caused by the lightning strike. Everyone was worried. Naruto hadn't eaten anything since the battle and he had barely slept. He was anxious. He was frustrated. He was angry. But, above all, he was scared. He hadn't ever felt anything remotely close to this level of hatred for anyone before. He didn't like it. _And Sasuke lost more than just one person,_ Naruto realized, bitterly. _Is this how he feels all the time?_ Naruto closed his eyes. When he opened them again he was in front of the large gate he had become so used to seeing.

"This is all your fault you stupid fucking fox." Naruto growled. The Kyūbi opened one of its massive eyes. **"And how, exactly, is it my fault that you were too weak to save your own friend?"** Naruto shook his head. "Because you won't fucking work with me! If you would just listen and start _trying_ to work with me like Tabi and Gyūki do, maybe Raiga would be dead! Bee wouldn't be bedridden and unconscious, Omoi wouldn't be making absurd exaggerations every second, Yugito wouldn't be crying every night and I wouldn't feel this amount of untamable hatred!" The Kyūbi laughed. **"You act as if it is my responsibility to protect you, runt. Let me make one thing ****_perfectly_**** clear to you; it isn't. I am not responsible for working with you, it is not my responsibility to become your friend, and I am not liable for what happens to you. The only thing I will do is make sure that you don't die from being stupid. That is it. If you die then so do I. That is the ****_only_**** time I will lift a damn claw to help you, got it?"**

"So if I were to put myself in a life-threatening situation every time I wanted you to help you would do it?" Naruto asked, mischievous plans forming in his head. **"Hn, go ahead. Try it. I dare you. I will immediately take full control of your body and rend your soul asunder to free myself from your sorry excuse for a seal." **The Kyūbi appeared to be sneering at Naruto through the gate. He then added, **"Your damn father seemed to be under the impression that I would ****_want_**** to work with you. Hah! As if I would want to work with a little twerp like you. You are weak. You are insignificant. Your life is but a small fragment of my hatred. I have only respected two humans in my entire lifetime, both of whom are ****_long_**** dead. You will not achieve what they did. Ever."** Naruto frowned. "Fine. I'm sorry for taking it out on you… I'm just… I don't know what to do. I've never felt like this before." The Kyūbi narrowed his massive eye. **"This, brat, will be the only piece of advice I will ever give to you, so don't expect any help from me like this again. That Raiga freak was injured in your last encounter. Badly. Go find him and kill him. That will put your hatred to rest. Gyūki may be weak, but he certainly isn't stupid. He knew what he was doing when he redirected that damage."**

"Thanks, Kyūbi… I guess." Naruto muttered. The Kyūbi scoffed, apparently ticked off. **"Don't thank me, runt. I'm only doing this because I'm tired of you attempting to speak to me as if we are equals." **He closed his massive eye completely, returning to his slumber. Naruto opened his. He spun around, grabbed his ninja gear and walked out the door. He had just made it to the entrance of the inn when Yugito called out to him. "Where do you think you're going, Naruto-kun?" Naruto shook his head, "Out."

"Not without me you aren't. I know you too well, you're going to go find Raiga. Well, newsflash, I'm not letting you go out alone. He'll kill you if you fight him alone. He's an S-rank ninja for a reason." Naruto turned and met Yugito's gaze. "No. You're staying here. If anything happened to you I wouldn't ever forgive myself."

"And if anything happened to _you_ and I didn't try stopping it then I wouldn't ever forgive _my_self. So I'm going with you. Omoi can look after Bee." Naruto sighed, defeated. "Fine." The pair walked out of the inn. Yugito was about to ask if Naruto had a plan but he was already headed toward Uragi's. When he arrived at the door he knocked, a little bit of his anger empowering each knock. When Uragi opened the door the first thing he was greeted with was, "Raiga Kurosuki. The guy who is terrorizing this village. Where is he?" Uragi's eyes widened. "Why do you want to know?"

"We're going to find him and we're going to kill him. Simple enough?" Naruto demanded impatiently. Uragi sighed, "His hideout is just southwest of here, near the sea. But don't go after him, he's much stronger than you give him credit for!" Naruto was already storming off before Uragi even began his warning.

* * *

Ten minutes later the jinchūriki pair was standing on a massive cliff overlooking the sea. They had spotted the small cave from a half a mile off and were currently standing outside. "You ready to do this, Yugi-chan?" Naruto asked. She nodded hesitantly. _This is insane,_ she quickly thought. "Raiga Kurosuki! You and I have some unfinished business, bastard. Come out of there and face me right now, you coward!" His challenge was met with a disturbing laugh from within the cave. Then, slowly, Raiga came into view. He had ditched his coat and was currently wearing a vest. Underneath the vest was a massive bloody bandage wrap. Each hand held one of his blades, the Kiba swords, already surging with electricity. "So the little brats have come to me to give them a proper funeral. That's so thoughtful! Saved me the trouble of hunting you down. I'll even forgive the boy for his little, hm, what shall I call it? Accident? Yeah, I'll just call it that." Naruto had heard enough. He sprang forward, both his blades already in his hands and both already channeling wind chakra. His first double-strike was parried with a cross-block. Raiga smiled. Naruto growled and flipped backward, performing a sequence of handsigns.

"**Fūton: Gale Strike!**"

Naruto launched a deadly wind from his blades at Raiga. He sidestepped it and channeled electricity into his own blades.

"**Raiton: Lightning Fang!**"

Raiga thrust his blades forward and released a lightning bolt toward Naruto. Naruto barely managed to dodge it in time. Yugito appeared behind Raiga, her bijū cloak already flowing around her. Her claws slashed toward Raiga's throat but he blocked them, smiling and kicking her backward. Naruto leapt forward and swung toward Raiga's unprotected stomach. Raiga turned his kick into a spin and blocked Naruto's blade, forcing him back with his own swing to Naruto's face. Naruto dodged and spun around, rushing through a sequence of handsigns. Behind Raiga Yugito was also performing a handsign sequence.

"**Katon: Hellfire!**"

"**Katon: Grand Fireball!**"

Yugito's blue fireball met Naruto's orange where Raiga had been standing a moment before. He was in the air, channeling lightning into his blades. When he landed he began spinning around rapidly. Naruto ran toward Raiga but immediately stopped when he saw what was happening. A giant cloud was beginning to form around him, electricity surging rapidly within.

"**Lightning Dragon Tornado!**"

The small storm became a whirling vortex that took the shape of a dragon. Naruto leapt back as the dragon crashed into where he had stood a moment prior. He didn't completely dodge it as electricity cracked around him, electrocuting him. He fell backwards, sliding until he managed to turn the momentum into a backwards somersault to quickly get to his feet. He growled. _This is nuts! I knew he was strong but to be this strong!?_ Naruto felt his own strength waning. His chakra was fine but the demand on his muscles was too much. His lack of nourishment and sleep were beginning to work against him. He quickly glanced at Yugito and nodded. Together they both charged forward to try and overpower Raiga together, but he just smirked and parried both of Naruto's blades with one of his two Kiba and blocked Yugito's claws with the other. "Aw, what's the matter? Is this all you kids have?" Raiga taunted. Electricity began to crackle around them. Both jinchūriki's eyes widened and suddenly they were being shocked by the very air around them. Raiga spun around, throwing both of them away.

Naruto was on the ground panting and he could barely move. Raiga walked over to him, smiling wickedly. "Pathetic. You're almost too weak to deserve a proper burial." Raiga spat, raising one of his blades. Electricity crackled around it and he swung it down toward Naruto. Weakly, Naruto raised his blade to block it. The moment the blades met, Naruto's shattered. Raiga shook his head. "Nothing can withstand my blades. Nothing. Know this as you die: you lost. I'm going to find your sensei and I'm going to kill him. I'm going to kill that girl over there. I'm going to kill your other friend. Then, I'm gonna take all the gold I've taken from this village and I'm going to leave. And I will never be seen again."

A sharp pain ran through Naruto's stomach as Raiga stabbed him. "I didn't hit any vital organs. You'll bleed out and slowly die, but don't worry, you'll get to watch as your girlfriend over there dies first. And you can't stop me." Raiga spat on the ground next to Naruto. _Dammit…_ he thought. _Dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit, DAMMIT! _Naruto closed his eyes, tears beginning to form within them, and he felt a sharp pain in his head. Ironic. He would die with one of those headaches.

Naruto tried to get to his feet but the pain in his found he was unable to. His vision blurred a bit, and slowly he turned his head to watch Raiga. He was slowly walking toward Yugito who, he noticed, was also unable to stand up. She was on her hands and knees, shaking. "Y-Yugi-chan…" Naruto muttered, wincing as he spoke. He couldn't believe it. He refused to believe it. She was going to die, and it was entirely his fault. _What was I thinking?_ he wondered briefly. _Why did I even remotely believe we could take on an S-rank ninja by ourselves?_ Naruto watched as Yugito tried battling Raiga away, swiping at him and blocking his blade. He kicked her. She fell backward and started trying to crawl away. He sneered at her. _No…_ Naruto screamed mentally. _No, no, no, no, no, no, no…_

* * *

The Kyūbi opened his eyes. He felt Naruto's own life force fading. The sewer around him was slowly getting darker. **_That idiot,_** he mused. **_I can't do anything, either. To think that I'm going to die because of his _****foolish****_ decision. _**The Kyūbi's eye widened as he felt a presence approaching. A presence that he hadn't felt in nearly two-thousand years. Slowly approaching him from the growing shadows was a man. The man had white hair, spikey hair with two strands that seemed to spike up and form horns toward the front of his head. His eyes glowed silver in the dark. Across his forehead sat a blank hitae-ate. The man wore a simple white kimono. Around the man's neck rested a necklace of magatama. In his hand he held a large shakujō, and resting in a sheath hooked to his belt was a katana. He smiled at the Kyūbi. **"You?!"**

"It's been a while, hasn't it, Kurama? Old friend?" the man spoke, the smile still shining on his apparition-like face.

**"****Im…impossible. You died. You died two-thousand years ago from old age! I sat by you as you drew your last breath. How is this even remotely possible? Why are you here!?" **Kurama demanded. The man chucked. "It appears that my own chakra is special. It has passed down through generations of individuals related to me by blood since my death. It seems that my spirit is reborn and hidden away within individuals destined for greatness, individuals who share the beliefs that I held. The previous man to bear my will was Hashirama Senju who went on to found the concept of these hidden shinobi villages. As for why I am here, Kurama… I am going to temporarily break this seal. Together, you and I are going to help this boy protect the one he cares the most about. After the battle has concluded I am going to reseal you. Then, Kurama, I want you to stop being stubborn like you always are and give the boy a chance! He is like me, after all. Work with him. I sense great things in this child's destiny, great things that he won't be able to accomplish without your cooperation. As for me, should you attempt to inform the boy of my existence I shall render him unconscious for a day as I remove the memories of your revelation to him. I don't want him to know of me and the power he possesses until the time comes."

Kurama grinned. **"As you wish, old friend. Fighting alongside one another after two-thousand years? It would be my pleasure. As for your request to befriend the boy… I will only do so because ****_you_**** are the one asking me to do it. You are among the two humans I respect." **The man smiled and raised his hand, the seal paper burning away and the gate slowly unlocking. "Cheer up! He is like me, after all. You may find you actually enjoy his company!" When the gate had fully opened the man turned around. "Shall we, Kurama?" he asked. Kurama's grin turned into a full-blown smile. **"We shall, Asura."**

* * *

Naruto raised his hand, as if trying to will Raiga to stop. Hot tears were stinging his eyes. He was completely helpless. He couldn't move and the headache was quickly getting worse. Yugito was backed up against a tree. It was over, and she knew it. _I guess I was never destined to live long,_ she thought bitterly. Matatabi sighed. **_It has been a pleasure knowing you, kitten. My only regret is that when I reconstitute myself on this earth a hundred years from now that I won't be able to tease you anymore. You fought valiantly, there was simply nothing you could do. _**Yugito watched as Raiga walked closer, fear filling her eyes as Raiga began laughing. "I left your boyfriend alive so he could watch you die." he quickly spat. "I'm looking forward to your funeral. It's always more interesting when they had loved ones." Tears began to roll down Yugito's cheek. _Naruto must be feeling an insurmountable level of guilt_, she realized quickly. Raiga raised one of his blades, preparing to finish it. She vaguely heard Naruto scream her name and cry out "No!" She closed her eyes and prepared for the blow. Raiga swung his blade down toward her neck. She tensed, preparing for the afterlife…

…but the blow never came. Carefully, she opened one eye to see what happened. As her eyes focused she saw what had stopped Raiga. The tree behind her had come to life and a large branch had wrapped itself around Raiga's wrist, stopping him. Her eyes widened and she quickly looked at Naruto. His hand was outstretched and his own eyes were wide. "What the hell is this?" Raiga demanded. Yugito looked back to Raiga, and to her shock, the branch grew thicker and longer as it coiled around Raiga, finally lifting him about an inch off the ground and tossing him away. She stood up slowly, and as she got to her feet Naruto appeared in front of her in the blink of an eye. "Naruto?" she asked, quietly. **_Kitten… I don't know how to explain it but… I don't think that's Naruto. I'm sensing three chakra signatures radiating from him. One is his own and one is Kurama's, I am sure of it. But the third chakra signature is one that I haven't felt in years…_** Yugito's eyes widened and, tentatively, she reached out to place her hand on Naruto's shoulder. That's when she noticed his eyes were closed, a calm expression resting upon his face.

Raiga, however, was not amused. "What the fuck? I stabbed you! You shouldn't be moving, let alone standing!" Raiga's breath caught in his throat as Naruto opened his eyes. His own eyes widened as he inspected Naruto's. The pupils in Naruto's eyes had narrowed and lengthened to resemble slits, giving his eyes a fox-like appearance. His irises, however, were gold. Then, suddenly, Naruto was enveloped in golden flames. They began to take shape around him. His hair was now flowing as if there were a wind, two horn-like protrusions forming out of it. The small whisker birth marks he had thickened to form black tribal tattoo markings. A long coat formed around him, resembling that of the Yondaime Hokage. The bottom of the cloak split into nine tails. Naruto's chest was covered in thick black symbols. But it wasn't the appearance that frightened Raiga. It was the immense level of chakra that Naruto had just gained. _What the hell is this?_ Raiga quickly wondered.

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt a knee slam into his stomach, sending him flying him skidding to the edge of the cliff. Raiga slowly stood, seeing Naruto standing where he had been moments prior. _He's so fast…_ Naruto was a blur as he was on him again, nailing him in the back, then his stomach, then his face, and then he felt Naruto grab him. Raiga was thrown into the air with incredible force. Naruto appeared above him, bringing his leg down in an axe kick. Raiga hurtled down, missing the cliff he had just been on and landing in the water below. As Raiga rose to the surface he looked up at Naruto, who seemed to be floating in the air. His eyes widened when he noted that there were massive waves of lava falling from the sky toward him. Raiga spun around and propelled his chakra into his feet, powering him across the water as the lava crashed all around him. He narrowly escaped being roasted. His success was short lived when he noted a giant wave surging toward him. _WHAT THE HELL IS THIS POWER!?_ Raiga mentally shouted. He turned to try to escape the wave but the wave was too fast. Raiga was swept up in it and slammed into the cliff wall.

The water that slammed him into the cliff immediately froze into ice. He was trapped. _No I'm not,_ Raiga mused. He channeled electricity into his blades and used it to destroy the ice around him. He leapt from what would have been his tomb just before a boulder crashed into where he had been trapped. Raiga began running toward the ocean again, dodging the massive boulders that crashed into the ice around him. Icy stalagmites shot out of the ice around him, nearly impaling him. Raiga began gathering electricity in his blade as he neared the water and before he reached it spun around to thrust a lightning bolt at Naruto. Naruto seemed to catch the bolt of lightning in his palm and then he shot it back with twice the power it had before. Raiga was hit dead on, and he flew backward several feet. Raiga rose to his feet slowly, now standing on the water again. That's when his feet felt incredibly hot. He looked down to see that the water under him was boiling and evaporating before his very eyes, the steam burning him as it rose. He sprang forward, escaping the water again and charging up the ice cliff.

When Raiga finally reached the top of the cliff he felt the air starting to sizzle around him and he dove forward. The spot where he had just been spontaneously combusted. Raiga immediately leapt forward, narrowly escaping the masses of branches that rapidly grew from the ground to try and ensnare him. His success was short lived as another branch grew in front of him and wrapped around his waist. Raiga looked up to see that Naruto had begun forming a strange white cube in his hands. Naruto launched the cube at Raiga who, deciding he valued his own life, sliced the vine that held him just in time to avoid being hit by the cube. Raiga watched as what was inside the cube seemed to be disintegrated at the atomic level.

Naruto raised his palm toward Raiga and released a huge amount of lightning. Raiga attempted to catch it with his Kiba, but he quickly realized that this wasn't standard lightning. It seemed to be infused with some different elemental chakra. The lightning electrocuted Raiga horribly and he fell to his knees. Naruto appeared before him, two blades in his hands. Raiga raised his own to parry them and found quickly that Naruto's strength had massively increased. Raiga was fighting for his life. Naruto's power was just too massive.

Yugito watched the battle, absolutely paralyzed by her fascination. _Naruto is _this_ powerful? What happened to him? What is that golden chakra around him and how is he using every single element under the sun to battle Raiga? _She felt her strength quickly returning. _Tabi, how are you healing me so fast? _The feline bijū purred. **_It isn't me, kitten. That massive chakra surrounding Naruto seems to be rejuvenating you, restoring your own chakra and healing you. It feels almost like it is pure Yang chakra, but that would be impossible. Only two people I know possessed that chakra._**

_Who were they?_ Yugito asked. She could feel Tabi hesitate and was about to just assume she didn't want to talk about it before she got a response. **_The only two people I know who possessed the ability to manipulate Yang chakra in this manner were the Sage of Six Paths and his son, Asura. But their descendants are the Senju, not the Namikaze or Uzumaki. It would not make sense for Naruto to inherit such a power as this. _**Yugito thought for a moment and then asked, _What is Yang chakra, anyway?_

**_Yang chakra manipulation is known more appropriately as "Light Release". It is an incredible gift to be able to use it as it has unparalleled restorative powers. If one is being touched by Yang chakra their life force is quickly restored. Organs that were lost can suddenly grow from nothing. Chakra that was spent is suddenly restored. Yang chakra can bring person back from the brink of death. Those who are masters of Yang chakra, as the Sage and his son were, can even bring people back from the dead who recently passed. It is the chakra of life. Its counterpart is Yin chakra, the chakra of spirit, more appropriately known as "Shadow Release". _**Yugito listened intently to Tabi's explanation. A million thoughts were running through her head, most of them revolving around a curiosity pertaining to Naruto's incredible new strength.

Meanwhile, Naruto and Raiga were locked in a kenjutsu duel. Every single swing Naruto made created a small crater around them, and Raiga felt as if his arms were going to snap in half from the sheer strength behind each and every blow. The earth around them began to crack and crumble, lava spraying from the new cracks. The wind was whirling around them with hurricane-force winds, tearing at Raiga's hair and vest and nearly throwing Raiga off-balance. Lightning began to crackle around them as a thin layer of mist lightly shrouded the battlefield. But the scariest thing about his battle was that Naruto's face remained calm and expressionless, as if he knew how the battle would end and was simply toying with him. The small hurricane that had formed around them was scorching hot, but Naruto did not seem the slightest bit bothered by it.

Naruto's powerful and rapid strikes ignited sparks as they ripped through the air between them, electricity following his blades' arcs. Naruto swung down. Raiga raised his left blade to parry it, but Naruto had predicted this. Naruto's other blade caught Raiga's left from the other side and Naruto spun around, wrenching the blade free from Raiga's hand. He followed through with his momentum, spinning around Raiga and gracefully slicing off Raiga's right hand, his blade infused with a powerful wind chakra that acted like a chainsaw. Naruto twisted his hand around and spun his blades so that they were parallel to his forearms. Then he plunged both blades into Raiga's stomach. Raiga's eyes were wide. He had been beaten. The amount of pain surging through his body was unbearable. Quickly he went numb and the world went black around him as he fell to the ground. Raiga's body hit the ground, lifeless.

Yugito's jaw had fallen to the floor. The grace and power behind Naruto's strikes was simply beautiful. He had done it. He had defeated Raiga by himself. As the winds around him calmed and the miniature volcanoes that had been formed went dormant Yugito ran over to Naruto, calling his name. He still did not hear her. Then, without warning, the chakra cloak around Naruto evaporated, revealing Naruto's standard choice of ninja attire. That's when she saw the hole in his flak jacket and shirt. But, much to her immediate and incredible surprise, the hole that should've been visible on Naruto's body was nowhere to be seen. Naruto fell to his knees and collapsed backwards. Yugito caught him before he hit the ground. He was unconscious. _That was… absolutely incredible! _She shook her head, rubbing her temples. _What am I going to say to Bee and Omoi? More importantly, how am I going to explain this to the Raikage? _She sighed and lifted Naruto onto her back. Before she left she quickly retrieved the Kiba from where they had fallen. _Omoi might want these. He's the kenjutsu expert, after all._

**_Good thinking, kitten. Plus, this way, no one else from Kiri can acquire those powerful swords and use them against you again. As for Naruto, his body is entirely exhausted. He'll be out for a while. You can relay the events to Bee through a mental connection when he wakes up. As for Naruto… I don't know. Regardless, kitten, we need to leave before any of Raiga's lackeys appear and cause you trouble. _**Yugito nodded mentally and began her journey back to the village. She was going to have fun explaining everything to everyone.

* * *

Asura raised his hand and closed the gate, locking it and replacing the seal that covered the lock. "Thank you, Kurama. When he wakes, please inform him of your decision to cooperate with him."

**"****And what of you, Asura? Will I ever speak to you again?"** Asura smiled, watching through a shimmering cloud as Yugito lifted Naruto's body onto her back and retrieved the blades. "Whenever you speak to Naruto you are speaking to me. As for whether or not you will see my own apparition, I will reveal myself to him when I feel the time is right." Asura turned met Kurama's gaze. "Also, I want you to make sure that Naruto becomes very close friends with that Sasuke. It is strange, but my brother Indra also seems to be doing the same thing as I do, reincarnating into someone with his beliefs that is destined for greatness. I may have failed in my lifetime to become close with my brother and failed to help Hashirama befriend Madara in his, but I will not fail this time. I will fulfill our father's wish and bring a permanent peace to this land." Kurama smirked. **"The old man's faith was well placed in you, Asura. I will eagerly await the time when we meet again."**

"I will as well. Goodbye, Kurama. Remember your promise." Asura's form began to slowly shimmer and fade away, finally passing out of existence. Kurama rested his head on his paw, smiling. He let sleep take him.

* * *

**And chapter four is complete! Hope you guys enjoyed it, I certainly enjoyed writing it! Next up, the Chūnin exams!**

**Quick little note, whenever I use the word "ki" I am referring to killing intent. It sounds kind of cheesy to type things like "he released a large amount of killing intent", so I'm just going to call it ki to make it seem less cheesy. Other than that, next chapter should be up in the next day or two!**


	6. The Chūnin Exams: First Phase!

**I managed to get the next chapter done in a day! I'm proud of myself. Anyway, it's time to start off the Ch****ūnin exam arc! I'm actually really stoked about writing these, I have a lot of plans for how these will be far different from the canon Chūnin exams arc, so I hope you enjoy what I'm doing with the plot! As soon as the Tsunade Retrieval arc is done the rest of my story's plot breaks off from canon events and things begin happening in a different order. Also, I decided to give a certain green-haired jinchūriki an early appearance.**

**buterflypuss: Well, to be honest I forgot Kiri and Iwa had two jinchūriki, so that was a mistake on my part. That was a mistake early on due to forgetting that Han was still loyal to Iwa and not an independent jinchūriki. To be honest I kind of considered Utakata as independent of any nation as he is considered a nukenin by Kiri.**

**Naruto Uchiha X: Tobirama created the Hiraishin, Minato learned it 80 years later after no one else had used it for that long a time period. There had to be ****_some_**** things that were lost in that huge time gap.**

**redlox2: Yeah it was similar to his Sage Tailed Beast mode. That gets explained in this chapter as to whether or not he can use all of that stuff normally. As for one of your other questions I forgot to answer earlier, yes, Kumo and Konoha are on spectacular terms as the whole Hyūga incident never happened. This will also mean Neji isn't a vengeful guy, but he still strives to be the best. Just because his father wasn't killed in Hiashi's place doesn't mean he doesn't want to outdo the main family. He's respectful of Hinata, though.**

**Quick reminder - Ki = Killing Intent.**

* * *

When Naruto awoke he was dimly aware that he wasn't by the cliff anymore. When the smell of antiseptic and other medical chemicals assaulted his nose he realized he was in a hospital. Naruto opened his eyes, immediately blinded by the bright white walls illuminated by the even brighter hospital lights. He softly groaned as he attempted to sit up. "Naruto-kun! You're awake!" Naruto recognized the voice. He turned his head to face the voice's source and his eyes met Yugito's brilliant violet eyes. "Yugi-chan?" he asked, quietly. He didn't believe what he was seeing. She was alive. "Am I dead? Is the afterlife a hospital?" he asked. She giggled, shaking her head. "No, you're back in Kumo!"

"How?" Before Yugito could answer the hospital room's door was blown wide open. A marched inside, followed closely by Bee, Omoi and Mabui. "Bee-nii! You're alright!" Naruto shouted. Bee nodded. "I'm up and I'm feelin' well, but lil' Nine I gotta say it's swell to see you up and feelin' better from what we all can tell!" he rapped quickly. Naruto smiled, tears forming in his eyes. "Bee, you were struck with natural lightning… When we saw you go down we all immediately thought you were dead…"

"Don't even worry, I can survive the storm's fury! Nothin' will ever bring me down, and there was no exception with that clown!" Omoi sighed, Yugito smiled and shook her head, Mabui grinned sheepishly and A rolled his eyes. "Naruto," A interrupted. "We have some serious business to discuss." Naruto met A's eyes, and he noted immediately that there were a million questions burning in them. "Do you remember at all what happened, Naruto?" Naruto shook his head. "No… All I remember is seeing Raiga preparing to kill Yugi-chan, then there was a huge amount of pain and a blinding white light. I don't remember anything after that. I'm sorry, A-ojiisan…" A smiled and shook his head, "You have nothing to be sorry for! Whatever you did after that is what saved Yugito. Though, she promised to explain just _how_ you took down an S-rank shinobi all by yourself when you woke up. Yugito?" All eyes were on her, she had the spotlight.

"Alright," she sighed, "so just as Naruto said, Raiga was about to kill me…" For the next thirty minutes Yugito explained what happened in vivid detail, leaving nothing unsaid. Her audience's eyes widened with every additional elemental use that she counted off, starting with wood, jumping to lava, then ice, then steam, then scorching wind, a superior version of lightning and finishing the count with the strange cube technique that seemed to rip apart whatever was inside at the atomic level. Then she explained the strange rejuvenation that occurred while Naruto was in his golden chakra cloak and briefly addressed Matatabi's belief that Naruto had a massive aura of Yang chakra around him. She was nearing the end of her story, reaching the part where Naruto was about to finish off Raiga. "…and each time their blades met a crater formed around them, lava erupting from the cracks, and then a hurricane built up, and every one of Naruto's swings seemed to generate a small storm and it started feeling really hot. But then Naruto pulled off this crazy stunt where he ripped one of Raiga's blades out of his hands, cut off his other hand and stabbed him in the stomach. That's when everything calmed down and Naruto went unconscious." Her audience was silent for a long time, the only sound audible was the quick scribbling sound of Mabui writing down every last detail.

"And you have no recollection of doing any of that, Naruto?" A asked. Naruto shook his head. A sighed, "Well, I've now learned two things today. The first is that Naruto has the capability of using a great deal of special kekkei genkai. If everything you described is true, Naruto could potentially use futton, hyōton, yōton, shakuton, ranton, and the Tsuchikage's special particle release. But the one that draws my attention is your description of Naruto's ability to manipulate the wood. There is only one style of jutsu that utilizes that style of manipulation, and that is mokuton. And that would be truly astonishing, as the last person capable of that jutsu died eighty years ago. He was the Shodaime Hokage of Konoha, Hashirama Senju." Omoi's jaw dropped to the floor as he counted the number of kekkei genkai that Naruto had access to. "B-but that w-would mean that Naruto has… e-eight kekkei genkai if you add in his own jinton." A nodded. "And that, Omoi, makes Naruto the most versatile shinobi in the world. This, of course, assumes that Naruto can actually use them all. I'm curious, can you attempt to use mokuton right now?"

Naruto shrugged. "I doubt it. If I wasn't aware of my actions there is no way I can repeat it, but I'll try." Naruto turned to the wall and held out his hand. He focused on the image of his arms turning into branches. _This is silly,_ he mused. _I won't be able to do it. There's no wa-_

Naruto's extended arm grew and turned into a branch. The room went silent. Naruto released the jutsu, the wood withering and retracting into his arm. Naruto turned back to meet the collective gaze of everyone in the room, grinning sheepishly. "So uh… I guess I can, huh?" A turned to Mabui. "Flip to Naruto's known abilities and add those seven other kekkei genkai to the list. Naruto just became a whole lot more powerful in one battle." Mabui nodded, "As you wish, Raikage-sama." A turned back to Naruto. "Looks like you're going to need to spend some time training again and figuring out how to apply those new kekkei genkai. Also, for the next month and a half, I want to teach you myself. Bee can train Yugito and Samui can train Omoi to use his new swords."

"New swords?" Naruto asked. Omoi started beaming, patting the two blades currently sheathed on his back. "See, you know how Raiga had those two special swords that seemed to amplify raiton usage and make someone practically invincible as long as a storm was going? Well, Yugito here had the smart idea of bringing them back and giving them to me. See, she believes that because I'm the kenjutsu specialist in this group that I'm the one who should get them." Naruto gasped and nodded, a smile forming on the corners of his mouth. He looked at Yugito who was nodding, smiling happily. "Each of us has something unique. I have my bijū taijutsu, you have your immense ninjutsu and now Omoi has the Kiba." Yugito said. That's when Omoi looked at A. "So, Raikage-sama, you said you learned two things today. What is the second?"

"The second," A smiled, "is that you four have earned not only the base S-rank payment of a million ryō, but also the one and a half million ryō bounty on Raiga's head for completing that mission. I'm proud of all of you. My faith was well placed." Team B erupted into cheers. Each of them had just gotten _very_ rich. "Naruto, when you've fully recovered meet me in my office. The rest of you, dismissed. Spend the next month and a half training and recuperating. Your next mission is the Konoha Chūnin exams!" A boomed.

* * *

The next month and a half passed quickly. Each and every individual member of Team B made tremendous progress. Under Samui's tutelage, Omoi became a fierce duelist, his kenjutsu skyrocketing to levels that jōnin had become envious of. He had quickly learned every last capability of the Kiba swords that he now possessed, mastering each new technique in a couple days. Omoi discovered that there were a number of things that these blades could do that other blades could not. His own fighting style had tightened up tremendously, and each blade felt like a deadly extension to each of his arms. As Team B's strategist, he also spent a lot of time studying each of the team profiles that he was given. Apparently it was not just Konoha and Kumo that were participating in the exams this year. Kirigakure was sending five squads of genin, Sunagakure was sending one, Amegakure was sending twenty-one squads of genin, and a new village that called themselves Otogakure was sending one. Even Takigakure and Kusagakure were participating. Konoha had about thirty of their own squads attending the exams as well. He quickly noted that three of these squads were the newest rookies to Konoha's shinobi force and that another was only a year more experienced than them.

Yugito spent a lot of time training with Matatabi, doing everything she could in order to grow the synergy they both had in battle. She made a lot of progress, starting from just barely being able to use a weakened chakra cloak with no tails and finally reaching a point where she could use a full chakra cloak with two tails. She wasn't ready for entering bijū mode, however. That would take a lot more physical training and adapting to the foreign chakra that would flood her chakra network. He taijutsu, as a result, greatly increased. Matatabi's chakra was slowly melding with Yugito's, meaning her own physical attacks had become far stronger and quicker. Her reflexes had increased as well. She rarely ever lost her balance and was always able to land on her feet, no matter how she was thrown. When she wasn't training she and Naruto were spending a lot of time together. It seemed impossible to anyone that they could grow any closer, but they proved everyone wrong yet again. The jinchūriki pair seemed to always be on the same wavelength and became so in-sync that fighting them together had become impossible. Add Omoi to the mix and the team seemed unstoppable. Their teamwork and synergy only helped reinforce the rumor spreading around that Team B had completed an S-rank mission.

Naruto's training was a secret. No one knew what he was learning, but they suspected he was being taught how to greater control his vast arsenal of new kekkei genkai. They weren't wrong, but Naruto had also been training a lot under A. His physical training was incredibly demanding, but for a good reason. He was being taught a new jutsu. No one even suspected that A would think of teaching him the jutsu that Naruto was learning, but Naruto was full of surprises, adapting to the usage of the jutsu immediately and comprehending how it worked within a week. This secret jutsu he was learning was, of course, the Raikage's **_Raiton no Yoroi_**, the jutsu that had made him the single fastest man alive.

It wasn't just Naruto's skill that vastly changed. His appearance did as well. He grew again, now standing at 5'6". His muscles also grew a bit. He wasn't hulking like A or Bee were, but they were certainly defined. Tabi constantly teased Yugito about what she should make Naruto do with those muscles. He kept his hair cut in the same way that Minato had it when it finally grew to the correct length in order to model after his father. Despite Naruto's immense loyalty to Kumo, Minato was his idol. A saw this and decided to give his adopted son a present for completing his first S-rank. It was a long coat, similar to the one Minato wore. The cloak was completely orange, Naruto's favorite color, and the edges of the cloak were decorated with a black fiery pattern, just as Minato's was. Written in kanji down the back was the word '_Nine_', a secret message to anyone looking for it that Naruto was the jinchūriki of the Kyūbi. Naruto had also been given a new flak jacket to replace the one that was destroyed by Raiga. Finally, he replaced the one blade that was shattered by the Kiba during his battle with Raiga, placing the Hiraishin formula on the hilt just as he had with the other one. He liked the feeling of having four blades.

Currently Naruto was training hard in a secret location, trying to master his kekkei genkai. He had come a long way in the past month, but with the Chūnin exams a week away and their departure from Kumo the next day Naruto wanted to get in as much training as he could get. He had managed to learn at least one jutsu for each of his new kekkei genkai, albeit each being weak. He wouldn't use them in a fight. He'd be limited to using then in certain-victory situations. He had also been able to apply his jinton jutsu speed to his **_Raiton no Yoroi_**, improving the speed that he could achieve with it active to insane levels of speed. When the Raikage learned that Naruto was capable of being faster than himself he nearly fainted. If word got out that Naruto had surpassed his speed he wouldn't be known any longer as the fastest man alive. _Oh well_, he had resigned, bitterly. _It was fun while it lasted._

After training non-stop for three hours, Naruto sighed and sat down, falling backward and closing his eyes. When he opened them again he was in front of his sealing gate. "I didn't try to come here," he muttered. "Must've been an accident." Naruto was about to leave when he heard the Kyūbi's voice call out to him. **"Wait."** he asked. **"I've been meaning to speak with you, Naruto."** Naruto turned around and was greeted by the sight of two large crimson eyes gazing at him. The immediate thing Naruto noticed was the lack of any hatred in the Kyūbi's tone. "You called me here?" Naruto asked.

**"****Yes. I've been trying to figure out the proper way to say it, and I finally figured it out." **Naruto raised a brow, curious. The Kyūbi had his full attention. "I'm listening…"

**"****I've been watching you, human. You never cease to amaze me. Against all odds you find a way and win. Even without my help," **the last statement seemed almost bitter. **"But I've come to the conclusion that sitting around doing nothing is not in my best interest. That is why, human, I am willing to give your 'friendship' a chance. I will help you from now on." **Naruto was shocked. _Is this for real? _he wondered briefly. "So then, how do I go about working with you?"

**"****For now I can only grant you a fraction of my power. However, I do know of a way to weaken the seal just enough to allow me to speak to you without pulling you into your subconscious like this. All you need to do is place your hand on this paper seal and channel some of your own chakra into it." **Naruto nodded and walked forward. He was lifted into the air in front of the seal and, cautiously, he placed his hand on it. He did as he was told and channeled chakra into it. To his surprise the kanji on the seal started glowing, and then on each corner of the paper a new kanji burned into existence. From top left corner to bottom right, each kanji translates to _'Sight', 'Sound', 'Touch' _and _'Mind'_. The message was clear. With these new additions the Kyūbi would be able to see what Naruto saw, hear what he saw, feel what Naruto was feeling and be able to communicate with Naruto through his thoughts. _Did it work?_ he asked mentally. He nearly jumped when the powerful voice of the Kyūbi filled his thoughts. **_Yes, Naruto. That worked. I can now communicate with you at any time. _**Naruto smiled and nodded. "Well, in that case then, I'm going to go back to reality. I have one last date with Yugi-chan tonight before we leave tomorrow."

**"****Wait, Naruto… Before you go…" **Naruto looked back at the Kyūbi. **"My name is Kurama." **Naruto nodded. "Kurama. Powerful name. Well, I'm glad we're finally on friendly terms, Kurama! I promise I won't let you down!" As Naruto left, Kurama smiled. The boy did remind him of Asura. **_This will be interesting,_** he thought briefly. Then he let sleep claim him.

* * *

The next morning arrived quickly. Team B was already at the gate when the sun was fully in the sky. They were waiting on Omoi to arrive, as he had to quickly go retrieve the documents from the Raikage that would allow them to enter Konoha without a problem. Even though Kumo and Konoha were allies you still had to have a visa to be allowed entrance, it seemed. While he was doing that, Naruto had decided he wanted to reveal to Bee and Yugito what he had recently achieved. "Yugi-chan, Bee-nii, I have something to tell you." They both looked at him, curious. "Well, you see, yesterday I was training and I decided to take a break after three hours of straight training," this elicited complaints from Yugito that he was working too hard without rest, "and I found myself in front of my bijū. Well, we started talking and, surprisingly, he's agreed to start working with me."

"Naruto, that's great!" Yugito exclaimed. Naruto smiled. "So how do I go about talking telepathically to you guys?" Bee placed his hand on Naruto's shoulder. "First ya gotta let go, and when you do you gotta reach out, ya know? When you sense our presence then you can communicate with us, and then we can strategize without a fuss."

"Okay then… Here it goes." Naruto closed his eyes and did as he was instructed, letting himself float freely. When he sensed a familiar presence he reached out to it. His success was greeted by Yugito's thoughts. _Looks like Naruto-kun can finally talk to both of us, Tabi! _Naruto felt a massive presence similar to Kurama's fill his mind. A silky and sultry voice began speaking. **_Oo, kitten, things just got a whole lot more interesting._**

**_Still as dirty as ever I see, Matatabi. _**Kurama mused. **_Ah, Kurama, I missed you. It's been such a long time since we've chatted it up! I've been dreaming about cuddling up to you, among other things. _**Naruto tried suppressing a laugh but failed. That's when something occurred to him. _Wait, bijū can have romantic interest?_ Naruto wondered. That's when Gyūki and Bee joined in the mental conversation. **_We bijū are beings of highly sentient chakra. We dream. We think. We feel. We have emotions. And, naturally, we can feel love. Though, don't mistake Matatabi's affection toward Kurama as love. She's simply the most sexually-inclined of the nine of us, as she was sealed in quite a few kunoichi who used sex to get close to targets before they killed them. _**Gyūki explained.

_That explains a lot. _Yugito thought. Naruto appeared confused. _So if all I had to do was reach out with my subconscious, why couldn't I do this before Kurama finally started trusting me? _Bee, deciding he wanted to be as thorough as possible, did not use rap to convey is reply. _You see, Naruto, this communication we're able to have is on a secondary level of a bijū's subconscious. Since they are all connected they can easily access this place any time they wish. In order for a jinchūriki to be able to come here the bijū within them has to guide them here. Otherwise, you couldn't be here._ Naruto nodded. _Thank you, then, Kurama. _Kurama scoffed in response. **_I sense that fourth member of your team nearing us._**

Sure enough when they returned to reality Omoi was standing there. "Are we ready then, Omoi?"

"Yup."

"Alright then, let's go!" Naruto exclaimed.

* * *

Team B took their time to travel to Konoha, deciding that they did not want to expend more energy than was necessary. So they walked. It took them five days of travelling before they arrived at the gates of Konoha on the sixth day. When they arrived the two guards – introducing themselves as Izumo and Kotetsu – gave them a little trouble before the pair finally relented, agreeing that the visitor's visa was genuine. Omoi made a point of subtly shocking both of them by channeling a small amount of electricity from his sheathed blades through the ground and into their feet. Naruto immediately looked at the famous Hokage Monument. He locked eyes with the stone eyes of the likeness of Minato. "Hey, dad," Naruto whispered quietly, "I'm finally here. I'll make you proud, I promise."

Before the group was able to get to their hotel they were stopped by an old man. Before Naruto could protest, he quickly realized by his appearance who he was. Long, spiky white hair, red haori, green kimono, mesh armor and a hitae-ate that bore the symbol for oil. Only one man in the entire world could possibly dress like that. "Ero-sennin!" Naruto shouted, excitement evident from how he was jumping up and down. Jiraiya frowned, clearly disappointed. "Naruto, for the last time, that is not my name!" Naruto smiled and shook his head. "Doesn't matter! You're proud of the fact that you're the great toad sage, and you openly admit you're a pervert with the books that you write. Therefore you are the famous Ero-sennin."

"Kami, when will children learn to respect their elders…?" Jiraiya muttered before studying his godson's new appearance. "You've grown! And you're more muscular. And it appears that you've taken after your father! Who'd you get that cloak from?"

"A-ojiisan!" Naruto exclaimed. He was excited that his godfather had just compared his appearance to that of Minato's. It meant that Naruto had succeeded in what he wanted to accomplish. "Jiraiya-sama." Yugito stated, coolly. She respected the fact that the man was Naruto's godfather and perhaps the last link Naruto had to his father, but he still pissed her off with his corruptive influence. She thanked kami every night that Naruto hadn't become like his godfather. Casually she slipped her hand in Naruto's. Jiraiya grinned a bit. "I see you two have finally gotten together!" He was about to say something perverted, but he was interrupted when Yugito cleared her throat quite audibly. The message was clear. 'Say anything dirty and I'll pummel you.' Jiraiya grinned sheepishly in response. "Say, Naruto, since I doubt you've had anything to eat today yet, how about I take you to this great little ramen place? Yugito can come too, if she'd like."

"No thank you, Jiraiya-sama. Naruto should spend some quality time with his godfather." Yugito smiled. She wasn't saying that because she didn't want to hang out with him. When he wasn't being his usual 'Super-pervert' self he was actually quite entertaining. She also knew, though, that Jiraiya was the closest thing Naruto had to a father. While A had been a positive influence on his life, he was more like that crazy uncle who would dare you to do suicidal things. Naruto smiled at Yugito and then nodded to Jiraiya. "I'd love to! What's this ramen place called?"

"Ichiraku Ramen. I guarantee you'll love it."

* * *

Ten bowls of ramen later – Naruto had fallen in love at first bite – Jiraiya was asking for the check. He was pleasantly surprised when Naruto paid for himself. "Damn, kid. When did you come into that much money?" Jiraiya asked, stunned. Naruto grinned. "I was hoping you'd ask. That was just a tiny little taste of what I earned after I completed my first S-rank mission." Jiraiya's face was priceless. "S-rank?!" he demanded. "Yup," Naruto replied. "This guy named Raiga Kurosuki, the second best of the Seven Swordsmen, had invaded this village on the border of the Land of Lightning. We showed up and kicked his ass. That's how my teammate Omoi got his swords, the Kiba blades." Jiraiya seemed genuinely impressed. "I knew you were strong, but to defeat Raiga? That must've been some fight." Naruto frowned, "It was, and sadly I don't remember any of it. Yugito had to tell me how the fight went down."

"Naruto? Is that you?"

Jiraiya and Naruto spun around to meet the gaze of three very familiar faces. "Sakura! Sasuke! Sai! Wow, it's great to see you guys! How've ya been?" Naruto asked. Sasuke smiled. "Pretty good, you? It's been a while since the Wave mission. I'm really interested in seeing how much you've improved." Jiraiya patted Naruto on the back, nodding toward the group. "Go with 'em, Naruto. I can talk to you later." Naruto nodded and left the stall, joining his Konoha friends. "So what've you all been up to?" Naruto asked. Sai and Sasuke looked at Sakura, allowing her to speak first. "Well, I decided that I was going to start training to be a medical ninja. I've gotten the basics down but I can't really have a real teacher until we make the rank of chūnin, as genin aren't able to apply for legitimate training. I'm really happy though, I managed to increase my chakra control! I hit things _really_ hard now."

"I can be the first to attest to that." Sai admitted, nervously laughing. Everyone gave their attention to Sai. "Well, I've been working on my art and my chakra reserves. I've spent a lot of time painting, as well. I also try to work on possible team formations that will give us the immediate edge in any combat situations, seeing as Sasuke and Sakura both have the close ranged combat covered." Naruto nodded and then finally looked at Sasuke. He grinned and held up his hand, grabbing his wrist. Electricity surged to life, a sound similar to birds chirping originating from the ball of electricity. Naruto gave an approving nod before Sasuke dispersed the jutsu. "Kakashi taught me his **_Chidori_**. He told me he saw a lot of drastic improvement on the Wave mission and decided I was ready for the responsibility of knowing his ace assassination jutsu. Only Sakura, Sai and Kakashi know about it, though. I'm saving it for the exams."

"Makes sense not to reveal your trump cards," Naruto agreed. "But I have to ask, why show me? It is entirely possible that we face each other in the finals."

"Because I doubt you'd really be caught off guard. You have five elemental affinities and the Hiraishin, you'd be able to avoid it anyway." Sasuke explained. Naruto shrugged and grinned, "You give me way too much credit." Sasuke quickly inspected Naruto's new addition to his appearance. "So, Naruto, what's with the cloak? Trying to emulate your father?"

"Yeah. Well, mostly. This was a gift from the Raikage for all the progress he thinks I've achieved. He-" Naruto froze and grinned. "Alright, you can come out now. I know you're there." Sure enough a small boy who only appeared to be about eight or nine years old appeared from under a cardboard box. "Aww!" he cried. "How the hell did you see me!?" Naruto grinned. "Well, let's see… A box in the middle of the street that just happens to be moving?"

"Naruto, this is Konohamaru, the Hokage's grandson." Sakura explained. Naruto bowed respectfully, causing Konohamaru to groan. "I hate it when people treat me like I'm special. I'm normal! I'm not defenseless." Konohamaru pouted. "We have that in common, then, Konohamaru," Naruto joked. "By the way, why were you following us, anyway?"

"Well, when I saw you at first I thought I was looking at the Yondaime Hokage for a second, but then I remembered that the Yondaime wore a white cloak with blue fire, not an orange one with black fire." Naruto smiled, "Well, you see, you and I also have something else in common. We're both related to Hokage of this village, you the Sandaime and I the Yondaime. That's why you thought you saw him, I take after him. He's my dad, after all." Konohamaru's jaw dropped. "Wait, really!? No way! In that case, I'm making it my mission to kick your ass and prove that I, Konohamaru Sarutobi, will be Hokage someday!" That said, Konohamaru turned around and ran. Naruto was rolling his eyes and about to make a joke when he heard a loud shout. "GET OFF OF ME!" Naruto and Team Seven ran to see what the commotion was.

When they rounded the corner they were greeted by the sight of a blonde girl about their age and a boy wearing what appeared to be a cat suit holding Konohamaru just a few feet above the ground by his shirt. "Now, brat, you're going to say you're sorry, got it? And if you do I _might_ consider letting you off without a beating."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Naruto said flatly. "Oh yeah? And why not? He's just a kid! And why do you care, Kumo?!" the cat-man shouted. Naruto grinned, "Because if you do anything to him you are hurting a member of the Hokage's family. Hell, the Hokage could decide that he doesn't want you here because of it and kick you out. That what you want?" The threat hung in the air for a few second before the cat-man made a decision. "It's a risk I'll take." He didn't even flinch before he was kicked back into a wall. Konohamaru massaged his neck as he was released. "Thanks, Naruto!" he shouted before running off. The blonde girl shook her head. "That idiot. I'm sorry, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Temari, and that moron you just humiliated is Kankuro."

"And who's that?" Naruto asked, pointing at a tree branch just above them. A red haired boy appeared. Naruto studied the boy's appearance. Spiky red hair parted just above his left temple to reveal a red kanji tattoo that meant _'Love'_, baggy eyes outlined by black paint, shaven eyebrows, pale skin and a giant gourd slung over his back. He gave Naruto the chills. **_There's a reason for it, kit. You sense it too, I assume? _**Naruto mentally nodded. This kid was a jinchūriki. "I apologize for my embarrassments of teammates," the boy stated in a cold voice. "They're idiots. Both of them. The only reason they're still alive is because I allow it. My name is Gaara." Gaara shunshined in a whirl of sand from the tree branch to the ground, standing a few feet from Naruto. Kankuro slowly stood up. "Gaara, these guys are punks, let's show them why they should fear us-"

"Shut up, Kankuro." Gaara spat, devoid of emotion in his voice. He turned to look at Naruto and Sasuke. "Your names, what are they?"

"Sasuke Uchiha."

"Naruto Namikaze."

Gaara smirked. "Mother doesn't like the feeling you two give her. I will enjoy killing you in her name." He turned to his teammates. "We're leaving." As Kankuro passed, Naruto muttered, "Nice makeup, catboy." Kankuro was about to whirl around to punch him in the face but he was stopped by Temari. Team Seven and Naruto watched them round a corner and disappear. **_It seems that boy believes that Shukaku is a girl. I am never going to let him live that down, _**Kurama quickly jested. Naruto wasn't laughing. _Did you see that look in his eye? He's unstable. He must've been abused badly in his village to have developed that level of insanity. We have to help him. _Kurama frowned in Naruto's mind. **_Why on earth would Suna send a mentally unstable jinchūriki with no control over his bijū into these Chūnin exams? There's something deeper than this, kit. _**Naruto hated to think that Gaara was only sent here as an unstable weapon, but the possibility made sense. He made a mental note to tell that to someone who could do something about it.

"Naruto-kun!"

Naruto spun around to see Omoi and Yugito running toward them. Naruto smiled and waved. "Hey guys! I found some friends!" he said, motioning to the people around him. Yugito smiled. "Wow, long time no see, you three! I'd love to stay and chat but we have to have a team meeting. We can meet up with you at the academy entrance tomorrow if you'd like!" Sakura nodded. "We'd love to! See you tomorrow, then! Have fun with your team meeting!"

* * *

When Team B arrived back at the hotel Naruto met the gaze of both Bee and Yugito. Immediately he knew it wasn't a team meeting for Team B that had been called. "I'm assuming you guys know about the Ichibi's presence here in Konoha?" They both nodded. "Naruto, when Bee and I felt it, we could feel the pain and suffering trailing the jinchūriki host. That boy has barely a shred of humanity left. While we're here competing in the Chūnin exams we need to make it a priority to help him. If he were to lose it in the middle of the exams…"

"Yeah, no kidding. Kurama believes that he's here for the sole purpose of losing it, though. And unfortunately I'm inclined to agree. You don't send an unstable jinchūriki into a large crowd of strangers in an environment that could cause him to lose it without considering the risk. They knew what they were doing in Suna by sending him here." Bee's shoulders sagged, and he nodded in frustration. "I don't agree with it at all, but it's not my call, as I can't go with you to the exam hall."

"Which means we're on our own, Naruto-kun." Naruto nodded. "And that means that we need to think of a game plan." Yugito nodded. "I'll go get Omoi and fill him in." Team B spent the rest of the night preparing and planning, finally going to bed at a reasonable time when they were satisfied with their strategy.

* * *

When the morning arrived Team B was already set and ready to go. The three genin smiled and waved to Bee as they left, Bee rapping about how they were going to "own" the entire exam. When they reached the academy Team Seven was waiting for them, just as they Yugito had suggested. Sakura waved. "So you guys excited?" she asked as they approached. Omoi sighed, "I just hope I don't get paired up against any damn fūton experts. That would totally mess up my game."

"He's thrilled, trust me." Naruto explained. Together the two teams entered the academy and began to look for room 301. When they reached the second floor they saw a huge group of genin gathered around a door with two other genin guarding the entrance. The sign said '301'. Sasuke scoffed. "Genjutsu."

"Yeah, but so many of them are taking the bait. They can't all be that incompetent, can they?" Yugito asked. Sai chuckled. "It appears that these exams will be easy if they all lack the intelligence to see through a simple genjutsu." Omoi shook his head and laughed. "I almost feel bad for them." Sasuke smirked. "Well there's an easy way to fix that." He was about to announce that it was genjutsu but some loudmouth beat him to the punch. It was one of the ninja from Kiri.

When everyone began their ascent to the third floor to get into the real exam hall, Sasuke was stopped by a boy in a green spandex suit wearing orange legwarmers. Naruto quickly noted his hands and wrists were bandaged, signaling intense training. "You are Sasuke Uchiha, yes?" the boy asked. When Sasuke nodded, the boy smiled. "My name is Rock Lee! I challenge you to a taijutsu match right here!" Quickly Lee caught Sakura's eye and winked at her. She shuddered. Naruto decided to interrupt before they started, "As much fun as it would be to get a brief preview of my opponents in this exam, shouldn't you save your strength for the more arduous and strenuous parts?"

"Yes, Lee, he is right!" Everyone turned to see a giant turtle. And on the turtle's back was a man who appeared to be Lee from the future. Lee smiled, tears welling in his eyes. "Yes! You are right! The flames of youth burn brightly in your heart… uh…"

"Naruto."

"The flames of youth burn brightly in your heart, Naruto-san! I look forward to fighting you!" What happened next would forever haunt the dreams of the six genin present. Lee and Older Lee looked at each other and a sunset suddenly appeared behind them. They began to cry together and shout the other person's name.

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

Naruto shuddered. **_This isn't genjutsu, what is this infernal monstrosity? _**Kurama asked. Naruto closed his eyes, but it was too late. The image had burned itself into Naruto's eyes. He noted that Yugito was cowering behind him. When the nightmare was over the teams entered the testing hall. Immediately a blonde-and-purple blur leapt onto Sasuke. "Oh Sasuke-kun! I've missed you so much! Did you miss me? I love you, Sasuke-kun!"

"This is almost as horrifying as that genjutsu between Lee and Gai." Sakura mused. "What did you say, forehead?!" the fangirl demanded, a hellish fire in her eyes. Sakura smirked. "Nothing, Ino-pig. After all, I guess your looks are all you have!"

"WHAT'D YOU SAY?!" Ino screamed.

"Ladies, ladies, please, calm down, I'm sure there's plenty of Sasuke to go around." Naruto joked. Ino whirled around to face Naruto, just about to give him a piece of her mind when she froze. _Oh kami,_ she thought. _He's more hunky than Sasuke._ Ino smiled and started walking toward Naruto. "And what's your name, handsome? Why haven't I seen you around before?"

"Ino I wouldn't do that." Sakura warned. "Shove off, billboard brow. Why not? He's absolutely sexy-" She froze as she was cut off by a massive wave of ki. Now, Ino was a very smart girl. She knew the different types of ki that one could release. For example, there was the insane ki, released by a mentally unstable individual who desired to kill you. There was the subtle ki, the kind that someone who clearly outskilled you would passively release without even noticing it. There was the fear-masking ki, the kind that one would release when they are trying to act tough but are actually incredibly scared. But this ki was extremely familiar to Ino. This was the ki an angry girlfriend would release when someone is flirting with her man. And it was a massive amount of ki. She was paralyzed. Slowly she glanced to the right and locked eyes with Yugito. Ino immediately retreated and hid behind Sakura, who clearly knew what was going on.

"Oh, great, it looks like Team Seven is here, too." The group turned and locked eyes with, supposedly, the other two members of Ino's team. "Shikamaru and Choji," Sakura introduced. "They were part of our graduating class." Shikamaru nodded. "And with Team Seven here that makes this whole damn thing more troublesome. Especially since Sasuke seems to have grown incredibly strong." Choji just kept munching on his bag of chips.

"Oh great, looks like you're all here! The rookie nine are all in the Chūnin exams." Everyone turned to examine the newcomer. "Kiba Inuzuka, Hinata Hyūga and Shino Aburame," Sai clarified. Naruto nodded. "Rookie nine?"

"Basically all nine of us are the graduating class of this past year. We haven't even been genin that long and we're all here taking the exams, hence rookie nine. But it doesn't matter, the whole damn thing is too troublesome," Shikamaru groaned. _Wow,_ Naruto mused, _this guy is really the definition of lazy._

"Seems you've made quite the impression," said a silver-haired man with glasses. Kiba glanced at the man, a little bit of uncontrolled fury burning in his eyes, "And what the hell is that supposed to mean!?" The silver-haired man chuckled. "Take a look for yourself." He pointed at the room behind them. Everyone in the room was harnessing their combined ki and directing it toward the large group. Ino started shivering, but Naruto patted her on the shoulder and smiled. "Watch and learn!" he declared. He nodded at Yugito and they, together, directed their own ki right back at the room. It looked like everyone in the room pissed themselves. The silver-haired man raised a brow. "Impressive. It appears you two aren't fooling around! I'm sorry, where are my manners, my name is Kabuto Yakushi."

"You look a little old to be a genin," Omoi said.

"I am," Kabuto admitted. "In fact, I've failed this exam six times. This'll be my seventh." Naruto narrowed his eyes. _There's no way anyone is that inept. Someone who has taken this exam that many times should've figured out how to pass them by now or given up._ Kiba spoke what was on Naruto's mind. "Wow, you must be terrible then. Sorry, man! Hope this time works out for you!"

"Ah, I have a better feeling about this time. Especially with these," Kabuto pulled out a large deck of cards. "Ninja Info Cards. I have something on just about everyone in this exam! And you know what they say; information is the strongest tool a shinobi can utilize. Just give me a description and I'll be happy to share my info with you."

"How about Gaara of Suna, Rock Lee of Konoha and," Sasuke briefly glanced at Naruto before grinning, "Naruto Namikaze of Kumo." The name Namikaze caused the rest of the rookie nine, save Sakura and Sai, to freeze. Before they could ask the question they were all collectively thinking, Kabuto pulled out three cards. "Aww, that's no fun, you already know their names! Alright then. Gaara of the Sand… Let's see… Ah, here we are. Gaara has been a genin for a year now. He specializes in a sand based technique. That's about all I have on him in terms of strengths. His teammates are Temari and Kankuro, both clanless, and his mission record… Let's see… Ah, he has taken 60 D-ranks, 22 C-ranks, 10 B-ranks and 2 A-ranks. Oh? This is interesting. He has yet to be injured in battle." Sasuke's eyes narrowed. Shikamaru protested. "That's impossible! If he's taken 11 B-ranks and 2 A-ranks he has to have been injured!" Kabuto smirked. "Nope. Says here that he has a perfect success rate. Now, let's see… Ah, yes, Rock Lee of Konoha. He's a year older than you. He, too, is a rookie this year as it is his first time. His teammates are Tenten and Neji Hyūga. His team has successfully completed 20 D-ranks and 11 C-ranks. Lee displays absolutely zero capability in ninjutsu or genjutsu," Team B and Team Seven both knew _that_ was a lie, "but it appears as if his taijutsu is off the chart! Incredible."

"Pfft. Big deal," Kiba said. "I bet I'd beat him." Sasuke smirked. "Tch, whatever you want to believe, dogboy. Next, Naruto Namikaze of Kumo, please." Kabuto nodded and poured chakra into his third card. His eyes widened. "I have barely anything on him other than teammates and mission record. Naruto Namikaze has been an active genin of Kumo for five years, unofficially completing missions under the alias 'Team B' until they were officially dubbed a team five months ago. His teammates are Yugito Nii and Omoi, and their sensei goes by 'Killer Bee'. He has a rather extensive mission history, but it makes sense since he's been active for five years. Let's see… 254 D-ranks, 127 C-ranks, 54 B-ranks, 11 A-ranks and…" Kabuto actually gasped audibly, "1 S-rank."

"An S-rank!?" Sasuke demanded. "When the hell did you complete an S-rank?!"

"Mmm, 'bout a month and a half ago. Was an intense mission, too," Naruto answered nonchalantly. He grinned, noticing the sudden attention, "Oh believe me, I'm not the scary one. Yugi-chan here is the one you ought to be afraid of." She, too, grinned devilishly. Kabuto laughed nervously, "It looks like the Kumo team is the scariest one here!"

"What'd you say, punk!?" A man wearing a large jacket threw his fist into Kabuto's face, shattering his glasses. "Are you implying the Oto nin are worthless!?"

"Take it easy, bro," Naruto warned. "What're you gonna do about it?" The man's question was answered when Naruto was suddenly behind him, a kunai pressed up against his throat. "Oh, you know, a little of this and a little of that," Naruto joked. Everyone in the room was focused on Naruto.

_That guy is insanely fast! Troublesome,_ Shikamaru noted.

_His speed has sure improved, _Sasuke thought, grinning.

_Hunky AND a badass? This guy has the total package! _Ino squealed.

"ALRIGHT MAGGOTS, SHUT UP AND SIT DOWN!" A hulking man entered the room, tailed by a number of shinobi. Everyone immediately ran to a seat that they were assigned on their entry papers. Naruto noted that he was placed next to Hinata and one Kiri genin. He quickly scanned the room and found that Yugito and Omoi were in the same row, albeit separated by one of the Oto genin.

"Listen up, maggots. My name is Ibiki Morino, and as far as you're all concerned I am your worst nightmare. This is the first of a three-part exam. In front of you there is a piece of paper with nine questions on it. You are to answer these questions in forty-five minutes. Upon the end of this forty-five minute testing period I will give you a tenth question. That tenth question has special rules which I will explain when we get there. Now before you go off thinking this is easy, your entire team shares a collective point pool. If one of you fails you will _all_ fail together, got it? And one other thing; if either I or my associates catch you cheating it will count as a strike against you. Three strikes and you're out." Ibiki looked up at the wall, watching until the clock was five seconds from noon. "Ready, maggots? Begin!"

When Naruto turned over the test he was immediately surprised. _Your team of ninja is surrounded by twenty armed foes. Your medic is injured and has very low chakra reserves. Your other teammate is unconscious. You have five kunai and three explosive tags. Your unconscious teammate knows a massive fire jutsu. You are practically drained of chakra and only have enough for a single clone. The diagram of the situation is shown below. How do you escape with all three teammates alive?_

Naruto stared at the question, dumbfounded that the very first question would trip him up. _What the hell? _Naruto asked. _These questions aren't genin level, they're easily high chūnin level… I see, the point of this test is to see how well you gather information! Kurama, can you link me up with Yugi-chan? _Naruto closed his eyes, feeling his presence reach out. When he made contact with Yugito she was surprisingly calm. _You figured out this test too, huh?_

_Yeah,_ Yugito replied. _To be honest though, this is stupid. Omoi was able to slip me the answers for the first question with his kunai reflecting his paper, and I know the next four. What about you? _Naruto quickly scanned his test sheet. _I know the answers to the last four. If you can somehow your answers to him we beat this shitty test._ The two jinchūriki worked together for the next ten minutes, Yugito carefully relaying the answers Omoi didn't know to him. When the Kumo team was done they sighed and laid back. Naruto closed his eyes and maintained his connection with Yugito. _So, Yugi-chan, there are some pretty clever ninja in here. Kunai reflections, Sasuke with his Sharingan, those two Hyūgas with their Byakugan, that sand cat-man Kankuro and his puppets… I wonder how they are in a fight…_

_I'm not worried,_ Yugito replied, confidence radiating from her presence. _We'll win no matter what. After that S-rank I feel like we are on top of the world!_ Naruto smiled. That was when Matatabi's voice interrupted their peace. **_You know, kitten, you guys are all alone here in your thoughts. You could do things to each other mentally that you are unable to do right now…_**

_Tabi! _Yugito replied, embarrassed. **_You know, _**Tabi started, **_I've always been curious as to what would happen if two jinchūriki were to mate. Would their bijū's power combine in their offspring? Would your own kittens have fox whiskers and feline grace? _**A sinister feeling washed over both of them. **_I think you should test it out right after this exam! Kitten, take him and make him yours, test my theory out! Please? _**

_Tabi, you're worse than my godfather, _Naruto sighed. That's when Kurama decided to join in. **_You know, kit… That is an interesting question. I'm now curious as well._**

_Kurama! _Naruto shouted, frustrated. _I'll talk to you later, Yugi-chan, when we aren't in the presence of perverts. _Yugito growled. _Yeah, well, at least yours is semi decent! Mine is this perverted all the time! Anyway, talk to you later Naruto-kun! _The jinchūriki released their connection. Just in time, too, as the forty-five minute mark had been reached.

"Alright, maggots, time is up!" Ibiki roared. Naruto quickly noted how a fair portion of the room had emptied. He made a rough estimate of the remaining teams, coming up with about twenty-one full teams remaining. That's when he noticed that he was being watched. Carefully he stole a glance at who it was that was watching him. A green haired girl with dark amber eyes and dark skin. He noted quickly that she was from Takigakure. **_Hm… Is it even remotely possible? Why the hell is there another jinchūriki here in this village? _**Kurama asked. _What?_

**_That green haired one, she is the jinchūriki for the Nanabi. It's getting crowded here in Konoha. The Ichibi, Nibi, Nanabi, Hachibi and myself, all in one convenient little place. It almost feels as if fate is pulling us all together. _**Before Naruto could respond, Ibiki began barking again. "Now, I'm going to give you the tenth and final question. Remember how I said there is a special rule to this question? Well, lemme just make it clear; if you fail this question your entire team leaves. And, worse than that, you remain a genin forever. You may leave if you wish and come back next year."

"WHAT!?" Kiba shouted. "That's not true, people come back all the time!"

"Yeah, but this is my first year proctoring, and I make the rules around here. And I'm changing them up." Ibiki smirked as multiple teams began to rise from their seats and leave.

Five teams had left thus far. Ibiki noticed Naruto laying back casually, completely unafraid. "What's the matter, blondie? You deaf?" Naruto looked up from a kunai he was playing with in his hand. "Nope, thanks for your concern though."

"A smartass! I like you types. You'll be the first to fail the question." Naruto smirked. "Oh cut the act, you and I both know you already asked the question and those five teams that left answered it with a resounding 'no'."

"What do you mean, Naruto?" Sakura asked. Naruto grinned and gazed at the ceiling. "This whole test was one big observation. The point of the first nine questions was so they could judge how silently and quickly you could gather information that you knew nothing about. Judging by how he never specified point values and didn't say 'don't cheat', I'd wager he was trying to scare people into the wrong mindset for this tenth question. You could've left your entire test blank and still passed this whole damn exam if you kept your cool." Naruto grinned as he sat forward. "The tenth question can actually be paraphrased quite simply. 'Will you take this mission?' It's a question posed to chūnin all the time. They don't get all the details. They don't know what the hell they're walking into. But being scared is worse than knowing your limits. By saying no you admit you are not ready for the second phase. By saying yes you stand up proudly and declare that you are a shinobi who will follow through with the task no matter what."

When Naruto's speech was finished the genin seemed to rally around him. Ibiki began laughing. "You know, in all my years, I have never seen a genin quite as confident as you, blondie. You all pass, congratulations."

Immediately following his words was an explosion of glass. Two kunai whizzed past Ibiki and pinned a banner to the wall. The banner read, _'The Extremely Sexy and Unbelievably Single Proctor of the Second Phase: Anko Mitarashi!' _When Anko walked in every boy with a pulse – save Neji, Naruto, Sasuke and Gaara – all developed sudden nosebleeds. Anko knew she had a killer figure and she made sure to emphasize it. The first and most notable thing about her was that all she wore was a skin-tight mesh body suit that extended from her neck to her mid-thigh – nothing else. No shirt or tank top. Hell, there wasn't even a bra visible. She wore an orangish-brown skirt around her waist and used a jacket to cover up her breasts – though, truthfully, it didn't hide them all that well. Anything else was ignored as all the boys who fell victim to her could only stare at her chest. She was about to begin speaking but Ibiki interrupted her. "You're ten seconds early, Anko. Any sooner and those kunai could've killed me."

"Well you'd be a sorry excuse for a ninja, then, wouldn't you, Ibiki?" she asked innocently. She turned to address the genin, "Damn, Ibiki! Sixteen teams? Last proctor cut them down to ten!"

"They're much braver than the last bunch, Anko," Ibiki tried justifying. "Tch, whatever Mr. Boring-o. When I'm done with 'em there'll only be eight teams left standing." This elicited a large collective _gulp._ "Alright, guys and gals, listen up! I'm your proctor for the second exam! Follow me!" She leapt through the window, the genin all following suit.

* * *

Five minutes later the group of forty-eight genin found themselves standing in front of a chain-link fence outside of a giant forest. Anko turned around and grinned evilly at her little genin army. "This, ladies and gents, is the rather infamous Training Ground forty-four! Its infamy is so great that it has been given another unique name." She waited until every last genin's attention was on her. "It's known more commonly as the Forest of Death." Naruto rolled his eyes, scoffing. Anko smiled at Naruto. "You know, I like you tough guys. You usually leave your blood all over the forest floor." Suddenly she threw a kunai at Naruto. Much to everyone's surprise, Naruto plucked it out of the air by the handle and appeared behind her, kunai in hand at her throat. "And it's the overconfident ones like you who generally die first. Everyone who has ever underestimated me has been left as a bloody mess." Anko grinned. "I like you, kid. But I'm still your proctor and I can still decide to fail your team on a whim, so I'd suggest cooling it."

Naruto sighed as he returned to where he had been standing prior to the little standoff. "Damn, Naruto…" he heard Kiba mutter behind him. Anko smoothed herself out before continuing on with her speech. "So, I'm sure you'll all be very curious as to what you're doing here. Well, it's simple, really. See, you're going to be given one of two types of scrolls. It'll either be a heaven scroll," she pulled a scroll with the kanji for _'Heaven' _written on the seal, "or an earth scroll." she repeated the action, this scroll with the kanji for _'Earth' _written on the seal. "The objective is to obtain both scrolls and then reach the tower in the center of the forest. You'll be given five days to complete this portion of the exam. But, before I give you gate assignments, there are a few rules that I have to inform you of. The first rule is simple; anything goes. You can kill if you want. Hell, go nuts and kill everyone," Gaara's eye twitched, "but just remember what the goal is. Doesn't matter if everyone is dead, if your team hasn't made it in five days with both scrolls you are _out!_ Rule number two; if you show up to the tower with both scrolls but one or more of your teammates is dead you are _out!_ I don't care if you're the freakin' Hokage, you work with your team. There are no lone-wolf sole-survivors in my test. As far as I'm concerned if you lose the life of a teammate the mission is a failure. Final rule, and this one is by far the single most important; _no peeking!_ Sometimes you'll get sent on missions to deliver important documents to foreign officials. Those documents are given to you in good faith, and they trust that you won't read them yourself and compromise country secrets. When you arrive at the tower and have both you may open them. Do so before then and you're in for a nasty surprise. Any questions?"

One genin raised their hand. It was an Amegakure genin, of which there were three full teams remaining. "Teaming up is completely allowed?" Anko grinned. "Of course! Like I said, anything goes. But don't think a larger group can save you. There are some genin in this group," her eyes met Gaara's, briefly, "who simply outclass you in every single imaginable way." She waited for a few seconds. When she was satisfied there were no more questions she finished off her speech. "Alright, kiddies, remember; once you're in there, you can't leave for five days. Do what it takes to survive, nothing more, nothing less. Don't underestimate your opponents or you might find it's the last thing you ever do. That said, let's get this show on the road! Each team will send up one person to grab a waiver to sign! This waiver is entirely binding and will hold up in any court; we proctors and Konoha are not responsible for anything that happens to you in that forest, nor are the villages of the genin who mess you up liable for loss of blood, limb, sight, hearing, et cetera, et cetera. Once you have completed the waiver you can come up and I will give you a scroll and a gate number assignment."

Ten minutes later Team B had an earth scroll and were walking toward Gate 17. "So what's the plan, Omoi?" Naruto asked. Omoi smiled. "So when we get in there we're going to start spiraling around the central tower, making our way inward slowly. I guarantee that the other teams are going to be doing the same thing if they're smart, so we're going to be rotating around the forest in the opposite direction. If possible I would _love_ to take out those Ame genin, seeing as they'll be in a large group. One of them is bound to have a heaven scroll. If we find them then we'll take all of their scrolls and hand them out to the Konoha teams. If not we'll just keep hunting down teams until we get our hands on a heaven scroll."

"What if a team is not as smart as you think they are? Where would they be?" Yugito asked.

"That's the beauty of it. If we are desperate for a heaven scroll there will be at least three of those teams hiding out near the tower to try and ambush someone. If I had to take a guess I'd say one of the two Kusa teams as well as Kabuto's team will do that. I'm also hoping one of those Kiri teams crosses our path, they've been giving me the stink-eye for the past hour and a half. Probably for so blatantly showing everyone my new swords." Naruto nodded. "If possible I would like to avoid the Suna team and the Taki team."

"The Suna team I get, but why the Taki team?" Yugito asked. Naruto frowned. "The green-haired girl on the team… She looks like trouble. I'd rather not get caught in a fight that would end poorly for either side." Yugito nodded. She noticed that the chūnin on the other side of the fence was smirking at them, possibly the reason why Naruto didn't delve into further detail as to why she looked like trouble. The message was clear, regardless. _She is a jinchūriki._ "Planning everything out already, Kumo?" the chūnin asked. "Gotta make sure we have all of our bases covered. Besides, I doubt that any other teams are planning that far ahead. Possibly that Shikamaru guy, he struck me as a genius, but he's also lazy. Regardless we're not gonna leave anything to chance; we came here to win." Omoi stated with a fiery determination. The chūnin smiled. "You three got guts, I'll give ya that. And to be honest, that's all you need for this test. Get ready, though, looks like it's just about to start." The three genin nodded, tensing as they prepared to spring forward. All three were psyched for this. This is what they had been training for.

The whistle sounded.

The gate opened.

Team B sprinted into the dark forest of Training Ground 44, completely unaware of just _who_ they would meet within.

* * *

**Hope you guys like the start of the ****Chūnin exam arc! So, unfortunately college is starting up for me soon, so updates will be a lot less frequent. I'm aiming for a new chapter every Friday, as I managed to get a class schedule that gives me Friday off. I'll aim to get the second phase chapter up by tomorrow and the start of the prelims finished by Monday. Thanks for being an awesome group of people!**


	7. Announcement

**Due to rereading this story multiple times to try and advance it, I noted numerous plot holes that I had left open. Additionally, I've read the reviews and realized that I really screwed this story up.**

**On top of all that, I don't like where I was taking it in the first place.**

**This story is being discontinued and massively rewritten. The plot will actually be pretty different. The writing will be better and I promise to have my act together in the new story. I hope you don't all hate me! I'll post a link to my new story for those of you who are now following it!**

**New story: /s/10676930/1/Naruto-Legacy**


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